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Thousands of people are expected to attend another march through downtown Los Angeles tonight to urge lawmakers to make it easier for undocumented immigrants to become citizens.

The candlelight vigil and procession is part of a national "Day of Action" that follows the U.S. Senate's failure to approve federal legislation that would have provided a path to citizenship to some illegal immigrants.

Two weeks ago, more than 500,000 people jammed downtown Los Angeles to protest a House bill approved in December that would have made it a felony to be in the country illegally. That bill also would have punished clergy and others who help illegal immigrants.

Organizers said they don't expect the crowds at tonight's rally to be as big, but they didn't anticipate half a million people two weeks ago either.

 Cardinal Roger Mahony, an advocate of immigrants rights, will deliver an opening prayer and blessing at the start of the interfaith procession, which is scheduled to start at 5 p.m. with a candlelight vigil at La Placita Church, near Olvera Street. From there, demonstrators will march to Fletcher Bowron Square on the 300 block of Main Street, between Temple and Aliso streets.

Other events around Los Angeles and Orange Counties are planned today, including a rally at 4:30 p.m. in East Los Angeles outside the Los Angeles Unified School District's main office. The participants, who have been asked to wear white, are expected to join with the procession from La Placita Church.

In the San Fernando Valley, demonstrators will gather outside the Hermandad Mexicana office at 7915 Van Nuys Blvd. in Panorama City around 6:30 p.m. for a candlelight vigil followed by a procession to the Federal Building at 6230 Van Nuys Blvd. in Van Nuys. That demonstration was organized by the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, or ACORN.

In Orange County, a rally is scheduled to start at noon outside the Federal Building at 411 West 4th Street in Santa Ana.

Even though the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles helped organize the downtown event, Mahony will not be able to walk in the procession because he must deliver a Mass, said Tod Tamberg, spokesman for the archdiocese.

"Ever since his days as a young priest with Cesar Chavez in the 1950s, he has been advocating for immigrant rights," Tamberg said of Mahony. "He believes we need an immigration system that works, meaning one that provides an orderly process for not only admitting people to this county but for dealing with people who are already here."

Senate leaders had hoped to approve a measure last week offering legal permanent residency to undocumented immigrants who have been in the country for more than five years. But the legislation failed, with only 38 votes, and Congress is now on spring break.

President Bush and others are opposed to amnesty for illegal immigrants no matter how long they've been in the country, saying it would be unfair to those who try to become citizens by following the rules. Many immigrants who came to the United States legally also are opposed to granting illegal immigrants citizenship.

Community, religious and union leaders have been urging their members to attend tonight's marches. Dozens of Latino organizations plan to participate in the downtown procession, including The Coalition for Humane Immigrants Rights, or CHIRLA; The Central American Resource Center, or CARECEN; and the Colombian American Citizens in Action.

Su Yon Yi, from the National Korean American Service & Education Consortium, or NAKASEC, says there are many Asian-American groups also participating in the rally. The Progressive Jewish Alliance, the American Civil Liberties Union and several labor unions also helped organize the event.

Los Angeles has been a hotbed of pro-immigrant activity, with some of the largest rallies in the nation. In the days following the mass rally last month, thousands of students walked out of school to protest immigration proposals they consider harsh. Those protests led to school lockdowns and a pledge from school and law enforcement officials to enforce truancy laws.

But Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and other political leaders applauded the students for their activism.

These protests are going on all around the nation today. There are those that are afraid that this will turn into a CIVIL WAR. While I agree that this is the largest protest the in the history of the U.S. it is not and never will be a "Civil War". A "Civil War" is a war that takes place between the citizens of a given nation. People must keep it foremost in their thoughts that the majority of these people are NOT citizens of the U.S. They are here illegally. They are legal citizens of other countries, yes I said other countries because these people are not just from Mexico even though that may be the largest portion of the protestors. We have illegal immigrants here from all around the world. Many of them are here for nefarious purposes not just for a better way of life.

Illegal-alien advocates
play down Mexican flag
Protesters in 60 cities wave Old Glory after burning of foreign nation's symbol


Thousands of supporters of illegal aliens gathered today in protest events in over 60 cities nationwide, but most left home a symbol that has stirred controversy with many Americans: the Mexican flag.

In what is being called a "campaign for immigrants' dignity," demonstrators instead are carrying the U.S. flag, a noticeable change from previous rallies in opposition to immigration-reform legislation pending in Congress.

According to Fox News, a protester at a large rally in Phoenix, Ariz., brought a Mexican flag to the event and was asked to remove it. Spanish-language radio had advised protesters not to take Mexican flags to today's protest.

The new sensitivity comes after immigration-reform advocates yesterday burned a Mexican flag on the sidewalk in front of the Mexican Consulate in Tucson, Ariz. They carried a sign that read, "Defending American Sovereignty," the Associated Press reported.

"Anytime they take to the streets, we'll burn a Mexican flag," Laine Lawless, director of the Border Guardians and organizer of Sunday's flag burning, told AP.

Said protester Roy Warden: "We felt that when people are taking to the streets, it was an assertion of Mexican sovereignty. Today we are defending American sovereignty."

The flag burners blame the Mexican government for the uncontrolled influx of illegal aliens into the United States from south of the border.

Police in Atlanta today estimated 40,000 protesters gathered for a march, many waving U.S. flags and signs.

Carlos Carrera, a construction worker from Mexico, held a banner that read: "We are not criminals. Give us a chance for a better life."

"We would like them to let us work with dignity. We want to progress along with this country," Carrera, who said he has been in the United States for 20 years, is quoted as saying.

Later this afternoon a rally in New York City is set to get under way. A large march is also scheduled to descend on the Capitol Mall in Washington, D.C., this afternoon.

Yesterday in Dallas, a protest rally drew between 350,000 and 500,000 people. Other rallies in 10 states drew thousands more.

As WorldNetDaily reported, one of the groups behind the protest rallies, the Mexica Movement, believe it is the "non-indigenous," white, English-speaking U.S. citizens of European descent who have to leave what they call "our continent," not the 12 million illegal aliens in the United States.

Assault underscores tension as Congress weighs immigration reform


PORTLAND, Maine --Dozens of people pressing for rights for illegal immigrants gathered for a peaceful demonstration on Monday just minutes after a counter-protestor was bloodied by a teenager who hid his face with a bandanna.

The attacker, described as a Hispanic teenager, went after one of three white people carrying signs arguing that illegals have no rights, police said.

As the teen fled, the victim dropped to the pavement after being hit with something heavy that the teen had carried, possibly in a sock or a bandanna, said Portland Police Sgt. Robin Gauvin. There were no arrests as of late afternoon.

The victim, identified as Robert Gorman, 23, of Portland, was hauled away in an ambulance minutes before 200 people gathered. He was treated and released from Maine Medical Center.

"When you promote violence, you get violence," said the Rev. Virginia Maria Rincon, one of the organizers. "Our rally is about promoting a peaceful dialogue."

About 200 people gathered at Monument Square to voice support for reforms that would legalize undocumented immigrants. The rally was one of many across the country on Sunday and Monday calling for Congress to promote immigrants' rights.

One of the organizers, Portland attorney Rafael Galvez, said people won't forget how members of Congress vote. "They will be remembered for how they vote on this sensitive issue. They can be compassionate, or cruel," Galvez said.

The demonstrators of all colors carried signs and chanted. "This is our America. "This is what America looks like," Shenna Bellows, executive director of the Maine Civil Liberties Union, said through a bullhorn to the cheering crowd.

Not everyone agreed with the majority view. Jonathan Talbot of Portland said he supported the views of the man who was assaulted.

"I think we should enforce the laws we have. Then we go from there to decide what we want to do to assimilate these people into society," Talbot said. He described the Border Patrol's efforts as a "catch-and-release" program

Sen Kennedy sees passage of immigration overhaul

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Sen. Edward Kennedy, the leading liberal voice in the U.S. Congress, on Monday likened huge rallies by immigrants across the country to the drive for civil rights by black Americans half a century ago.

And in an interview as he prepared to address a large immigrants' rights rally planned for Washington, Kennedy said he was confident a divided Congress would come together and fairly revamp the country's immigration laws.

"This is reminiscent of the civil rights movement," said Kennedy, a Massachusetts Democrat first elected to the Senate in 1962. "It's equal in terms of intensity and feelings among the groups."

The 74-year-old lawmaker, long seen as a crusader for America's poor and downtrodden, is helping lead a drive within both parties to overhaul U.S. immigration laws in a way that would both tighten border security and provide a way that would give most of the estimated 11.5 million to 12 million people in the United States illegally a chance for citizenship.

In exchange, they must hold jobs, pay back taxes and meet other requirements, such as showing a knowledge of English.

Critics, including labor unions opposed to a guest-worker program and conservatives fearful of lax border security, denounce the measure as amnesty that would lead to even more illegal immigration. But backers, including many employers, say immigrants, legal and illegal, are vital to the economy.

"I think we'll get an immigration law," Kennedy said in his Senate office. "The issue is not going away."

The senator expressed hope that Republican President George W. Bush, with whom he has crossed swords on a number of issues, including the Iraq war, will keep pushing for a comprehensive immigration overhaul including a new guest worker program.

"He has taken a lot of heat from members of his own party," Kennedy noted.

But he said Bush could score a major victory if he can persuade Congress to agree on sweeping legislation.

"It's an overarching issue of our time," Kennedy said. "It'd be a major accomplishment for him and our country."

While the United States is a nation of immigrants, there has been mounting discontent in recent years with what virtually all agree is a broken system that has allowed a rising flood of illegal immigrants.

There is widespread opposition, especially in the Hispanic community, to a bill passed by the U.S. House of Representatives that would make all illegal immigrants in the United States felons, erect a fence along the U.S.-Mexican border and punish Americans who try to help illegal workers.

With hundreds of thousands of people taking to the streets in recent days to protest the bill, Kennedy said: "I think Republicans touched a very raw nerve when they talk about the criminalization of the undocumented."

For many illegal immigrants, making them criminals enhanced "their sense of fear and uncertainty," he added. "They want to be part of 'The American Dream' and have their children part of the dream as well."

Kennedy noted that a half a century ago, his brother, President John F. Kennedy, declared: "We are a nation of immigrants."

Senate action on a possible compromise plan collapsed last Friday amid fighting over possible amendments many feared would effectively kill the bill. Kennedy said he expects problems to be worked out once Congress returns from its two-week recess at the end of the month.

"There is a groundswell of support for this proposal that we effectively worked out in a strong bipartisan way," Kennedy said.

In Kennedy's speech prepared for Monday's rally in Washington, he invoked the memory of one of the nation's leading civil rights leaders, though no similar figurehead has emerged from the diverse Hispanic and other populations that have coalesced around the immigration issue in the massive protest rallies.

"More than four decades ago, near this place, Martin Luther King called on the nation to let freedom ring," Kennedy said. "Freedom did ring -- and freedom can ring again. It is time for Americans to lift their voices now -- in pride for our immigrant past and in pride for our immigrant future."

Arrival of aliens ousts U.S. workers

An Alabama employment agency that sent 70 laborers and construction workers to job sites in that state in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina says the men were sent home after just two weeks on the job by employers who told them "the Mexicans had arrived" and were willing to work for less.
    Linda Swope, who operates Complete Employment Services Inc. in Mobile, Ala., told The Washington Times last week that the workers -- whom she described as U.S. citizens, residents of Alabama and predominantly black -- had been "urgently requested" by contractors hired to rebuild and clear devastated areas of the state, but were told to leave three job sites when the foreign workers showed up.
    "After Katrina, our company had 70 workers on the job the first day, but the companies decided they didn't need them anymore because the Mexicans had arrived," Mrs. Swope said. "I assure you it is not true that Americans don't want to work.
    "We had been told that 270 jobs might be available, and we could have filled every one of them with men from this area, most of whom lost their jobs because of the hurricane," she said. "When we told the guys they would not be needed, they actually cried ... and we cried with them. This is a shame."
    Mrs. Swope said employment agencies throughout Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi faced similar problems, when thousands of men from Mexico and several Central and South American countries -- many in crowded buses and trucks -- came into the three states after Katrina, looking for employment and willing to work for less money.
    The number of foreign workers who flooded the area after the hurricane has been estimated at more than 30,000. Many of them have been identified by law-enforcement authorities and others as illegal aliens.
    The Gulf Coast Latin American Association noted in a report that whether those workers will remain after the cleanup work is completed is not clear, but the longer those jobs last, the more likely it is that the workers will settle permanently. After Hurricane Andrew hit southeastern Florida in 1992, the association said, the construction boom attracted large numbers of Hispanic immigrants to several areas, including Homestead, Fla., where the Latino population doubled during the 1990s.
    Many of the illegal aliens came into the Gulf Coast states not only from south of the border but also from California, Arizona and Texas, responding to the demand for workers. U.S. Border Patrol officials in the three states have reported an increase in the number of illegals apprehended.
    Some of the migrants who did get jobs in the Gulf states also were mistreated, records show. Two class-action lawsuits are pending in federal court in New Orleans in which thousands of migrant workers said they never were paid, although many worked 12-hour shifts, seven days a week and were required to remove toxic contamination from hurricane-ravaged buildings.
    Some of the named companies were working on contracts from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and other government agencies.
    Government estimates put at 400,000 the number of jobs lost in the Gulf region as a result of Katrina, which displaced more than 1.5 million people, and many of those workers left the area to seek employment elsewhere because available construction, laborer and cleanup jobs in Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi had been filled by foreign workers, including illegal aliens.
    President Bush last week signed the Katrina Emergency Assistance Act of 2006, which extended for 13 weeks unemployment compensation benefits to more than 140,000 residents of the Gulf states who were displaced from their jobs by Katrina. Their benefits, funded by FEMA, had expired March 4.
    Would-be employers in Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi, awash in cleanup and reconstruction jobs, faced little in the way of legal problems in hiring the illegal aliens after Katrina because the Department of Homeland Security temporarily suspended the sanctioning of employers who hired workers unable to document their citizenship.
    Mr. Bush also had suspended the Davis-Bacon Act, which requires local contractors to pay "prevailing" wages, in the areas hit by Katrina to encourage reconstruction and cleanup.
    "The men we sent to jobs in Alabama were local fellows looking for work, men who needed jobs," Mrs. Swope said. "After driving 50 miles to the work sites where they had been promised $10 an hour, they discovered the employers had found substitutes who were willing to work for less."

McCain Backs Immigration Opponent in Ohio

 Republican Sen. John McCain campaigned on Tuesday for a conservative congressman who publicly disagreed with the potential 2008 presidential candidate on how to deal with illegal immigration.

Six-term Rep. Steve Chabot made it clear that while he welcomed McCain's appearance at a breakfast fundraiser, the two are on opposite sides on how to deal with the nation's estimated 11 million illegal immigrants.

 "This happens to be an area where the senator and I don't agree," Chabot said after McCain attended the fundraiser for the Ohio congressman's re-election campaign. Chabot said they do agree on some issues.

Last year, Chabot voted for a House bill that would make all illegal immigrants felons and make offering them non-emergency aid or assistance a federal crime. The bill also calls for building a fence along 700 miles of the border with Mexico.

McCain favors legislation that seeks better border security, regulations on the future entry of foreign workers and allows most of the nation's illegal immigrants to eventually qualify for citizenship through a series of steps, including paying any back taxes and passing criminal background checks.

"I support the House bill," Chabot said. "I think it's a mistake for us to even consider anything like a temporary worker program, or some people call it amnesty, until we have border control."

The public disagreement between Chabot and McCain reflect the deep divisions within the Republican Party over immigration. It also highlighted the political reality that McCain, in weighing another White House bid, is reaching out to all factions of the GOP.

The Arizona senator is spending the first week of the congressional recess campaigning for House and gubernatorial candidates in New Hampshire, Arkansas, Ohio, Minnesota and Iowa.

A day after massive demonstrations around the country for immigration rights, McCain said he was hopeful about the prospects for the Senate bill that he favors, arguing that the show of force underscores the need for urgent action.

"I am confident that over time we will prevail with a comprehensive approach to this issue," McCain told reporters.

The bill stalled in the Senate last week.

McCain told some 300 people at the fundraiser that immigration is a critical political issue, especially for Hispanic voters. In recent presidential elections, Republicans have made gains among Hispanic voters.

"So we better treat this issue with care, we better treat it with sensitivity, better treat it with humanity," McCain said.

Later in the day, McCain planned to travel to Cleveland to join Secretary of State Kenneth Blackwell, a gubernatorial candidate in a GOP primary fight with Attorney General Jim Petro.

"It bolsters him with conservatives by being with Blackwell," Robert Rousseau, the Republican chairman in Lorain County, said of McCain.

Immigrants' firing leads to protest

15 women lose jobs after attending rally; manager says they were warned

Detroit meatpacking plant said Monday that 15 immigrant women were fired last month after attending a protest for immigrant rights. He said they had been told that they would be terminated if they missed work on the day of the protest.

But the workers and an activist working on their behalf said the women were given no such assurances. If the workers knew they would have been fired for attending the March 27 rally in Detroit, they never would have skipped the morning shift, said Elena Herrada, a Detroit activist who is trying to help the women get their jobs back.

Herrada and about 20 union officials went Monday to Wolverine Packing Co. offices on Rivard to inquire about what happened. They were given a letter signed by general manager Jay Bonahoom, explaining why the workers were terminated.

Meanwhile Monday, marches were held in Washington, D.C., Atlanta and other cities to protest proposed changes in immigration rules. On Sunday, hundreds gathered at Holy Redeemer Catholic Church in Detroit.

Some of the Wolverine workers were undocumented, Herrada and one of the workers said, and wanted to march in the Detroit rally to show their support for immigrant rights.

Tens of thousands of people, mostly Latinos, protested legislation that would make it a crime to help undocumented immigrants. The next morning, when the women reported to work for their shifts as meat cutters, a supervisor told them to clean out their lockers and go home.

Bonahoom said that as far as Wolverine knows, the workers were documented, but an employment agency does the actual hiring. He said the workers had been told, "written and verbally," on the Friday before the protests that their attendance was mandatory on the day of the protest.

They were fired "for standing up for their rights," Herrada said.

The fired workers were natives of Mexico and many had worked at the plant for several years. Most have children and are worried about supporting their families, Herrada said.

Many were employed by Minuteman Staffing. So when Wolverine wanted to fire the workers, the meatpacking company told Minuteman to let go of the workers, he said. A manager with Minuteman said he couldn't comment on the case.

But the workers say they were treated wrongly.

"It was not fair,'" said Mercedes, a 31-year-old Detroit woman who attended the rally and was fired. "We went to fight for our rights." Mercedes is undocumented and asked that her last name not be used.

"It was really unfair of a company to do that," said Edith Castillo, head of the Detroit-based Latin Americans for Social and Economic Development.

Hollywood steps into the political arena again.

Tancredo spoofed on SNL

Tom Tancredo's political star has been rising along with the immigration issue, and now he's a TV star, too.

The congressman from Littleton, a leading immigration hard-liner, was featured in the leadoff skit on Saturday's broadcast of NBC's "Saturday Night Live".

Tancredo (portrayed by "SNL" cast member Jason Sudeikis) was interviewed on a pretend segment of CNN's "Anderson Cooper 360," where he decried the loss of jobs to illegal immigrants: "If we don't do something fast, one day we're going to have to look our children in the eyes and say, 'I'm sorry Timmy, but you're never, ever going to be able to wash dishes at a restaurant."

There was also this exchange with "Anderson Cooper" (Seth Meyers) about how to keep illegals out of the country:

Tancredo: "It's very simple. We're just going to build a 700-mile-long wall across the entire length of the Mexican border."

Cooper: "Seven hundred miles? That's a very long wall. It sounds like that might be very expensive to build."

Tancredo: "Well, you would think so, Anderson, but it's not. Now, I can't go into specifics, but suffice it to say, we found a labor force willing to get the whole job done, at about a fifth of the cost. ... They don't need health insurance, and you just pick them up in the parking lot of the Home Depot."

The real Tancredo repeated the "SNL" jokes in a lunchtime speech today at the Denver Athletic Club. When he failed to get laughs, he remarked, "You had to be there."

The "SNL" segment also featured actor Antonio Banderas, the show's host for the week, as Mexican President Vincente Fox, complaining about the problem of Americans immigrating to Mexico -- for spring break.

"You suck up our natural resources, such as tequila and rum punch," he said.

Newly energized, undocumented US immigrants plan more protests

 The recent unprecedented wave of demonstrations across the United States has given a new sense of empowerment to undocumented workers, who promise more dramatic protests in coming weeks.

Immigrants' rights advocates, elated by the resounding success of Monday's "National Day of Action," which drew as many as one million protesters across the United States, now are planning a national boycott which they hope will have an even greater resonance.

 Organizers are planning the May 1 "Great American Boycott," urging illegal immigrants -- who cannot vote and who have only limited political power -- to flex their economic muscle.

Protesters are being urged to refrain from shopping, and to stay away from school and work.

"We are expecting that with this national boycott we will be able to further gain some respect, dignity, and improve the lot of the immigrant community," said Javier Rodriguez, a Los Angeles-based activist who is the boycott's spokesman.

"The undocumented community (are) the people that take care of their children, the people that care of the elderly, and the sick, who serve their food, who pick their fruit and their vegetables. We are rebuilding New Orleans. ... We are everywhere," he said in a recent interview with Fox News.

The kickoff day for the strike is May 1, international "Labor Day."

"On May 1 ... those people that don't have documents and their families and their allies will show America once again that they are human beings and they are orderly."

Political observers said the recent protests of mark the coming-of-age in particular for US Hispanics -- now the largest US ethnic minority -- and will make it harder for politicians to ignore the Latino vote.

As Jaime Contreras, president of the National Capital Immigrant Coalition, told the at a protest in Washington on Monday: "I have a message for all of the politicians in Congress and ... our president. Today we march, tomorrow we vote!"

The historic protests were meant to apply pressure on US lawmakers who are considering election-year reforms in immigration laws.

The proposed legislation runs the gamut from granting millions of undocumented immigrants the chance to become US citizens; to making illegal entry to this country a felony; to booting out illegal immigrants and erecting a fence on the southern US border, making it harder for people to enter illegally in the future.

Organizers said the newly-invigorated immigrants' rights movement also is giving a shot in the arm to tired progressive movements across the country, particularly organized labor, which has seen shrinking membership and a number of political setbacks in recent years.

"This is an issue that all working people and progressive organizations must embrace," said the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) labor union in a statement.

"The struggle for immigrant rights is a vital part of the struggle against racism and repression, and for the full rights of all working people ... Let's build on the unity and momentum," the IWW urged its members.

However, the massive turnout of recent protests did not seem to weaken the resolve of lawmakers determined to pass tougher immigration legislation.

Representative Tom Tancredo, one of the most outspoken opponent of more lenient immigration laws, said in a statement that Monday's protests "show how entrenched the illegal alien lobby has become."

"The iron triangle of illegal employers, foreign governments and (interest) groups ... puts tremendous pressure on our elected officials to violate the desires of law-abiding Americans," he said.

Tancredo continued: "As nearly every recent poll shows, Americans want secure borders -- not amnesty -- and sooner or later theyll elect representatives who will listen to their constituents.

The marches also appear to have fed a backlash among some resentful Americans who feel illegal immigrants are lawbreakers demanding rights to which they are not entitled.

"What we have seen out in Los Angeles and other parts of the country is that it's actually created a backlash," said Susan Wysoki, a spokesperson for the Federation for American Immigration Reform, which supports tougher enforcement of immigration laws.

"These are folks who are here demanding rights they don't have the right to demand, because their very first act in coming to this country was to break our laws by entering illegally," she said.

Immigrant Bill Fallout May Hurt House GOP
Strict Provisions Are Uniting Critics


In the wake of this week's massive demonstrations, many House Republicans are worried that a tough anti-illegal-immigration bill they thought would please their political base has earned them little benefit while becoming a lightning rod for the fast-growing national movement for immigrant rights.

House Republicans rushed through legislation just before Christmas that would build hundreds of miles of fence along the U.S.-Mexico border, require that businesses verify the legality of all employees' status through a national database, fortify border patrols, and declare illegal immigrants and those who help them to be felons. After more lenient legislation failed in the Senate last week, the House-passed version burst into the public consciousness this week, as hundreds of thousands of protesters across the country turned out to denounce the bill.

Yesterday, House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) and Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) issued a joint statement seeking to deflect blame for the harshest provisions of the House bill toward the Democrats, who they said showed a lack of compassion. "It remains our intent to produce a strong border security bill that will not make unlawful presence in the United States a felony," Hastert and Frist said.

Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.) fired back that "there's no running away from the fact that the Republican House passed a bill and Senator Frist offered one that criminalizes immigrants."

House Democrats acknowledged they helped block Republican efforts on the floor in December to soften the Republican-crafted section declaring illegal immigrants to be felons, but they said ultimate responsibility for the bill rests with the Republicans, who voted overwhelmingly for its passage.

"The Democrats were not going to do anything to make it easier for Republicans to pass an atrocious bill," said Jennifer Crider, a spokeswoman for House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.).

Yesterday's maneuvering underscores how the immigration issue has mushroomed into a fierce political debate with potentially large stakes heading into the November congressional elections. The hundreds of thousands of protesters in the streets Monday vividly demonstrated the power of the issue, which some strategists say threatens to undercut President Bush's long-standing hope of making Hispanic voters a GOP constituency.

"There was political calculation that they could make this the wedge issue of 2006 and 2008, but it's not playing out that way," said Rep. Raul M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.). "This has galvanized and energized the Latino community like no other issue I have seen in two decades, and that's going to have electoral consequences."

Republicans say they could accept that sentiment if they believed they had won political points from the GOP's restive base. But for all the negatives, they don't have many positives to show for their efforts.

"From the standpoint of those who would applaud the House's stand, I'd say we have not gotten sufficient credit," said Rep. Phil Gingrey (R-Ga.), a reliable supporter of House leaders. "I'm somewhat distressed that they have not gotten word of what we've done."

The politics of the issue have shifted markedly since the House acted. Republican lawmakers are increasingly saying they will now consider some avenue to grant illegal immigrants access to lawful employment. And Democrats who voted for the House bill with an eye on their political futures or to preempt feared attacks from conservatives are rethinking their position.

Rep. Ted Strickland (D-Ohio), a supporter of the bill, was greeted by protesters and shouts of "Migration is not a crime" in February when he opened his Ohio gubernatorial campaign office in Cleveland. Now, he regrets his vote, campaign spokesman Jess Goode said.

The 36 Democrats who voted for passage included Rep. John T. Salazar (Colo.) -- whose brother, Sen. Ken Salazar (D-Colo.), has railed against the House measure -- and Rep. Harold E. Ford Jr. (Tenn.), who may find it difficult to tap into the mobilizing Latino vote in his run for the Senate this year.

Although much has been made of the failed efforts in the Senate last week to forge a bipartisan measure to toughen border security while creating a system to allow many of the 11 million to 12 million illegal immigrants here to achieve legal status or citizenship, the actions in the House late last year have received little attention until now.

House GOP leaders had rushed lawmakers back to Washington for a rare December session to vote on the immigration measure, hoping to give their members an accomplishment to brag about over the long winter recess. But it was the deft maneuvering of Democrats that preserved the bill's most infamous provision, declaring illegal immigrants felons, and that provision has helped turn the bill into a political albatross for some Republicans, Democrats say.

The bill, written by House Judiciary Committee Chairman F. James Sensenbrenner Jr. (R-Wis.), was passed in a matter of hours, nine days before Christmas. Just seven amendments were allowed to come to a vote, none of them fundamentally altering the legislation.

Sensenbrenner's committee bill included the felony provision, but when he took it to the House floor Dec. 16, he offered an amendment to downgrade the offense of being an undocumented worker from a felony to a misdemeanor.

The Democratic leadership pushed its members to vote against the amendment, and 191 Democrats did. Only eight Democrats voted with Sensenbrenner.

"It was an ugly bill in most respects, the felony stuff, the wall and no amendments," said Rep. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), who tried to add a guest-worker provision but was not allowed a vote. "The leadership saw this more as a statement than a policy, but I think in the end we would have been better off had we been more deliberative."

With so little debate, media coverage was minimal, and what coverage there was got little notice in the holiday bustle, Republicans say.

"We're victims of our own success," said Rep. Tom Price (R-Ga.).

Sensenbrenner's bill is getting attention now, not so much from Republican-base voters but from Spanish-language radio shows and Latino activists who have made it the focus of marches that have drawn more than a million protesters. One sign on the Mall Monday read "Sense, not Sensenbrenner."

In a letter to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops last week, Sensenbrenner charged that all but eight Democrats "decided to play political game by voting to make all illegal immigrants felons."

But Democratic votes alone did not seal the defeat. Sixty-five Republicans voted against it, too, including anti-immigrant firebrands such as Rep. J.D. Hayworth (Ariz.) and moderates such as Rep. Thomas M. Davis III (Va.). Rep. John A. Boehner (Ohio) voted against the amendment and the bill just weeks before he was elected majority leader.

GOP Chiefs Don't Want Immigrants Charged


The two top Republicans in Congress, confronted with internal party divisions as well as large public demonstrations, said Tuesday they intend to pass immigration legislation that does not subject illegal aliens to prosecution as felons.

A written statement by House Speaker Dennis Hastert of Illinois and Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist of Tennessee, did not say whether they would seek legislation subjecting illegal immigrants to misdemeanor prosecution or possibly a civil penalty such as a fine.

 "It remains our intent to produce a strong border security bill that will not make unlawful presence in the United States a felony," the two men said. An estimated 11 million men, women and children are in the United States illegally.

The Republican-controlled House passed legislation late last year that is generally limited to border security measures. It makes illegal immigrants subject to felony prosecution.

Senate efforts to write a broader bill _ covering border security, a guest worker program and a path to citizenship for many of the 11 million in the country illegally _ are gridlocked with lawmakers on a two-week vacation.

Frist has said he intends to bring the issue back to the Senate floor, although he stopped short of a flat commitment and the prospects for passage of an election-year immigration bill are uncertain.

The late-afternoon statement by the top GOP leaders in both houses came after days of large street demonstrations by protesters opposed to criminal penalties for illegal immigrants.

Additionally, in a Washington Post-ABC News poll published during the day, only 20 percent of those questioned said they favored declaring illegal immigrants to be felons and barring them from work. More than 60 percent indicated support for the general approach envisioned in the leading Senate proposal. It includes a requirement that illegal immigrants be required to pay a fine and back taxes as part of a process of qualifying for eventual citizenship.

Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D- Mass., dismissed the proposal by the GOP leadership, saying: "Actions speak louder than words, and there's no running away from the fact that the Republican House passed a bill, and Senator Frist offered one, that criminalizes immigrants."

"This debate shouldn't be about making criminals out of hardworking families ... but rather about strengthening our national security and enacting a law that reflects our best values and our humanity," Kennedy said.

The question of a penalty has dogged the debate for months and been the subject of intense political maneuvering.

GOP aides pointed out that Rep. James Sensenbrenner, R-Wis., chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, had tried during debate on the House floor to reduce the penalty to a misdemeanor.

The attempt failed on a vote of 257-164, with 65 Republicans and 191 Democrats opposed. Many of the Democrats, including members of the Hispanic Congressional Caucus, indicated at the time they favored no criminal penalties, and opposed the suggested change.

In their statement, Hastert and Frist said the Democrats who did so had demonstrated a "lack of compassion." In addition, they renewed the charge that Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid is seeking to "block action on immigration legislation."

Reid has denied the charges.

While they leveled their accusations at Reid, the GOP leadership has been struggling with internal divisions.

Several House Republican conservatives have vociferously denounce Senate proposals as amnesty for lawbreakers.

And while Frist praised the leading Senate proposal last week as a "huge breakthrough," he was the only member of the GOP leadership to embrace it. Two other members of the group, Sens. Jon Kyl of Arizona and Kay Bailey Hutchison of Texas, voiced their opposition. Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania opposes the measure, according to a spokesman.

Sen. Elizabeth Dole of North Carolina, who heads the party's senatorial campaign committee, declined this week through an aide to take a position on the bill.

A spokesman for Sen. Mitch McConnell, the second-ranking Republican, sidestepped a question by saying the Kentucky lawmaker favors a comprehensive approach.

Tucson Region
City man arrested after Mexican-flag burning
By Brady McCombs
Arizona Daily Star
Tucson, Arizona | Published: 04.12.2006

A Tucson man was arrested Tuesday for his role in the burning of a Mexican flag as part of a counterprotest at a pro-immigration rally.

At about 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, Tucson police cited Roy Warden, 58, on suspicion of assault, criminal damage and reckless burning, and then released him, according to Sgt. Decio Hopffer.
Video footage shot Monday by police and the media showed Warden assaulting a TV cameraman and a photographer, Hopffer said. Because only one of the men pressed charges, there is only one assault charge.

Warden faces the criminal-damage charge for harm done to the concrete shuffleboard court where Warden's group was burning the Mexican flag, Hopffer said.

Warden and his group, Border Guardians, arrived at Armory Park just after noon Monday to stage a counterprotest to the 15,000 marchers who were protesting what they see as unfair immigration laws. At about 2:15 p.m, they burned Mexican flags and tempers flared.

Police arrested two girls for throwing water at Warden and his group, and a scuffle broke out as police escorted them away. On Monday, Tucson police arrested six people on charges of aggravated assault on a peace officer, interfering with governmental operation, hindering prosecution and disturbing the peace.

Hopffer said police are still reviewing tape of the scuffle.

Warden said the charges are a direct result of political pressure from the Mexican Consulate.

"If they saw something unlawful, why didn't they commit an arrest then?" Warden said.

He said he plans to represent himself at his court hearing on April 24 and said he's confident he will clear himself of charges. In addition, he said he plans to sue the cameraman for defamation of character and denying his right to free speech.

Another member of Border Guardians, Laine Lawless, called the arrest a petty way to punish the group for its dissenting voice.

March organizers also questioned why it took police so long to make the arrest. They have a requested a meeting with city officials for Thursday to discuss the issue, said Zoe Hammer, spokeswoman for Border Action Network, one of the local human-rights groups that organized the march.

Guest-worker hopes spark rush to border


NOGALES, Mexico - At a shelter overflowing with migrants airing their blistered feet, Francisco Ramirez nursed muscles sore from trekking through the Arizona desert - a trip that failed when his wife did not have the strength to go on.

He said the couple would rest for a few days, then try again, a plan echoed by dozens reclining on rickety bunk beds and carpets tossed on the floor after risking violent bandits and the harsh desert in unsuccessful attempts to get into the United States.

The shelter's manager, Francisco Loureiro, said he has not seen such a rush of migrants since 1986, when the United States allowed 2.6 million illegal residents to get American citizenship.

This time, the draw is a bill before the U.S. Senate that could legalize some of the 11 million people now illegally in the United States while tightening border security. Migrants are hurrying to cross over in time to qualify for a possible guest-worker program - and before the journey becomes even harder.

"Every time there is talk in the north of legalizing migrants, people get their hopes up, but they don't realize how hard it will be to cross," Loureiro said.

South-central Arizona is the busiest migrant-smuggling area, and detentions by the U.S. Border Patrol there are up more than 26 percent this fiscal year - 105,803 since Oct. 1, compared with 78,024 for the same period a year ago. Along the entire border, arrests are up 9 percent.

Maria Valencia, a spokeswoman for U.S. Customs and Border Protection, said the rise in detentions did not necessarily mean more people were crossing. She attributed at least some of the additional detentions to an increase in the number of Border Patrol agents.

"We've sent more technology and agents there, and I think that's had an impact," she said.

But Loureiro, who has managed the shelter for 24 years, said the debate in the U.S. Congress has triggered a surge in migrants. In March, 2,000 migrants stayed at the shelter - 500 more than last year.

Many migrants said they were being encouraged to come now by relatives living in the United States.

One of them is Ramirez, a 30-year-old who earned about $80 a week at a rebar factory in Mexico's central state of Michoacan.

He spent an entire night walking through the Arizona desert with his wife, Edith Mondragon, 29. When her legs cramped, their guide abandoned them and the couple turned themselves in to U.S. authorities. They were deported.

But they said they would try again when they regained their strength.

"We want to try our luck up there," Mondragon said. "We can't go back to Michoacan because there is no future there."

Ramirez said the draw was not only the prospect of work in Minnesota, where two of his brothers milk cows on a ranch. He was also excited about the idea he might be able to do it legally.

"My brothers said there is plenty of work there, and that it looks like they will start giving (work) permits," he said.

Many of the migrants also are being driven by a desire to get into the United States before the likelihood that lawmakers further fortify the border.

Since the United States tightened security at the main crossing points in Texas and California in the 1990s, hundreds of thousands of migrants have turned to the hard-to-patrol, mesquite-covered Arizona desert, risking rape, robbery and murder at the hands of gangs and now facing armed U.S. civilian groups.

About 2,000 people a day pass through Sasabe, a hamlet of just a few dozen houses and a Western Union office west of Nogales, says Grupo Beta, a Mexican government-sponsored group that tries to discourage migrants from crossing the border and helps people stranded in the desert.

On a recent afternoon, at least 40 vans overflowing with migrants arrived in the desert near Sasabe in less than an hour. Migrants and their smugglers waited for nightfall before starting a desert trek that would involve up to a week of walking in baking heat during the day and biting cold at night.

Grupo Beta agent Miguel Martinez mans a checkpoint 20 miles south of Sasabe, where he warns of the dangers of the desert, such as bandits armed with knives or guns who order migrants to strip naked, rob them and sometimes rape them.

He also tells about the volunteer border-watch groups that have sprung up in Arizona.

"Right now there are migrant hunters who are armed, and you should be careful," Martinez told a group traveling in a rickety van missing some of its windows.

At Grupo Beta's office in Nogales, Raul Gonzalez, 44, said he walked in the Arizona desert for five days before turning himself in when the blisters on his feet started bleeding and his left leg swelled up.

Like most migrants interviewed for this story, Gonzalez said he was robbed at gunpoint just after crossing into the United States.

"The guides and the robbers are all the same," he said.

Gonzalez said the first time he sneaked into the United States, he did it through Tijuana, across the border from San Diego. He said he worked illegally at a printing shop in Chicago for 15 years but got homesick before he could settle the paperwork for legal residence.

Despite the robbery and his failed trek, Gonzalez said he would try again once his feet heal. His bricklayer's salary of about $60 a week in the western state of Jalisco simply is not enough to provide for his four children.

"It's hard to cross," he said. "But it's harder to see your children have little to eat."

Reid Seeks Immigration Bill Rescheduling

The Senate's top Democrat asked Majority Leader Bill Frist on Wednesday to return to work on immigration legislation immediately after the Senate completes a bill with more money for military operations in Iraq and hurricane relief.

Congress is on a two-week recess and the Senate is scheduled to consider the war spending bill when it returns April 25.

Minority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada said in a letter to Frist that the need for an immigration bill was highlighted by rallies across the nation this week protesting a House bill that would subject illegal immigrants to prosecution as felons.

Reid labeled as "confusing" Frist's position on a compromise put together by Sens. Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., and Mel Martinez, R-Fla., that collapsed last Friday after Democrats refused to allow votes on several amendments to it.

"I can only conclude that you had second thoughts about Hagel-Martinez after right-wing members of your caucus made known their strong opposition to it," Reid wrote.

Frist, R-Tenn., responded with a statement saying Reid "needs to stop clogging up the Senate with procedural gimmicks and let members have fair up and down votes on amendments"

"Every day he stalls, we are less safe and less secure," said Frist, who is on a congressional trip in Eastern Europe.

Before leaving last week, both party leaders had embraced a compromise that would let the majority of the estimated 11 million illegal immigrants remain in the U.S. and get on a path to citizenship but require those in the country less than two years to leave.

Frist and House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., issued a statement Tuesday saying they will seek legislation that would subject illegal immigrants only to misdemeanor prosecution or fines as an alternative to the sterner measure passed by the House last year.

Immigration woes

WASHINGTON, DC, United States (UPI) -- Thirty-three years ago Jean Raspail wrote an almost-prophetic book on immigration gone wild. In his novel 'The Camp of the Saints,' the French author explained how social conditions in the developing world deteriorated to the point that it forced millions of refugees from the Indian subcontinent to storm the beaches of southern France after commandeering an armada of cargo ships. At the same time, another million or more hungry Chinese oozed across the Amur River into Russia. With refugees flowing like uncontrolled mercury into Europe from the east and west simultaneously, the face of Europe was suddenly changed -- forever.

Monday`s massive protests by mostly Latino immigrants in dozens of cities across the United States of course came nowhere near the epic scale described in Raspail`s spellbinding narrative. Monday`s marches were orderly and colorful, unlike Raspail`s army of humans eating their way through Europe like a cloud of locusts; the human tragedy of large-scale migration forced by socio-economics gone wrong.

Yet, seeing tens of thousands of demonstrators -- many of them illegal entrants into the United States -- spill almost like marbles out of a bag as they rounded the corner of Vermont Avenue, a mere block from the White House, it was hard not to make the analogy with Raspail`s book. With a few differences, however.

Raspail wrote his book in 1973. At that time a million illegal refugees swimming from tramp freighters onto European shores seemed to represent a frightful number. One million! Today, 33 years later, there are 11 or 12 times that many illegal immigrants in the United States alone.

One out of 12 'illegals,' close to one million, some say as many as two million marchers, took to the streets of America`s major cities: Washington, D.C., San Diego, Atlanta, New York, Chicago, and dozens of smaller cities and towns. It was the largest coordinated protest on immigration to ever take place in the United States.

At stake is a proposed law that would make illegal immigration in the United States a felony. Waving American flags and chanting 'Si, se puedo,' Spanish for 'Yes, we can,' the protestors passed within hearing distance of the White House. But they were also waving Mexican flags, and flags from San Salvador and other countries, too. A reminder of how much of a melting pot this country is.

This issue of immigration, and what to do about it, places President George W. Bush and the Republican Party under new pressures and at contradictions. Giving the majority of illegal immigrants amnesty and U.S. citizenship does not seem to be the solution, as some politicians on the left are suggesting. And nor is expelling 12 million people a possibility, as some politicians on the right would like to see happen.

Congress needs to find a workable middle ground for the sake of all parties concerned. President Bush has made of immigration a central point of his presidency, along with the war on terror. The president wants a guest worker program that would not penalize illegal immigrants, giving them and foreign workers access to the vast U.S. labor market. The millions of blue-collar laborers provide the American marketplace with a work force able to fill jobs that Americans would never want to consider.

In a move they hoped would please conservative districts faced with a flood of immigrants, the House of Representative passed legislation last December that would allow building hundreds of kilometers of fences along the U.S.`s southern border and declare illegal aliens who cross into the United States, felons. This would make it even more difficult for those with a police record to find lawful employment. The fate of the 12 million illegals currently living in the United States now rests with the U.S. Senate, which is trying to find a workable solution to the border security issue.

America`s problem today is not dissimilar to that of Europe`s. Europe is encircled by almost 6 billion people. 'Only 700 million of them white, hardly a third of them in our little Europe,' writes Raspail. 'And those no longer in bloom but quite old. They face a vanguard of 400 million North Africans and Muslims, 50 percent of them less than 20 years old...' The United States has similar problems, with the baby boomers ageing and Latinos banging at America`s gates, jumping over them, burrowing under them and swimming across them.

Raspail writes that the Roman Empire 'did not die any differently, though, it`s true, more slowly.' This time, Raspail predicts, 'we can expect a more sudden conflagration.'

The problem facing the United States today is no different. But shutting the gates on immigration, be it in the United States or Europe, will not make the problem disappear. Immigrants will find a way around, under or over whatever wall is built to keep them out. The intelligent solution is to assist developing nations in creating programs that will encourage their young to stay at home and find decent paying jobs there. Otherwise, the result will undoubtedly be the human deluge of biblical proportions imagined by Raspail.

Groups Ask Mexicans to Boycott U.S. Firms


MEXICO CITY — "Nothing gringo," warns the rallying cry of Mexican activists calling for a boycott of all U.S. businesses south of the border on May 1.

The campaign, aimed at pressuring Congress to legalize undocumented migrants, was timed to coincide with "The Great American Boycott," in which activists are urging migrants in the United States to skip work and avoid spending money to demonstrate their importance to the U.S. economy.

The Mexican boycott was being promoted on Web sites and through e-email messages, one of which warns that "people shouldn't buy anything from the interminable list of American businesses in Mexico."

"That means no Dunkin' Donuts, no McDonald's, Burger King, Starbucks, Sears, Krispy Kreme or Wal-Mart," the message said.

Promoted by some of the same groups that organized massive immigrant marches across the United States, the protest _ also dubbed "A Day Without Immigrants" _ comes as Congress debates immigration bills proposing everything from toughened border security to the legalization of all 11 million undocumented migrants in America.

Mexican unions, political and community groups, newspaper columnists and even some Mexican government offices have joined the call for a parallel boycott of U.S. businesses in Mexico. For some it's a way to express anti-U.S. sentiment, while others see it as part of a cross-border, Mexican-power lobby.

Advocates occasionally missed their mark in identifying boycott targets. For example, they incorrectly identified Sears stores in Mexico as American owned even though Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim bought Sears Mexico operation since 1997.

And in an ironic twist, the protest targets the U.S. business community _ one of the strongest supporters of legalization or guest-worker programs.

"Boycotting would only hurt corporations that are backing what people want done in the immigration bill," said Larry Rubin, chief executive of the American Chamber of Commerce in Mexico.

In place of a boycott, Rubin encouraged Mexicans who have relatives in the U.S. to urge family members to write to their lawmakers in support of comprehension immigration reform.

Some organizers of the U.S. rallies have told people not to risk their jobs or education after some workers and students were fired or cited for truancy. But many others say marchers want to make the sacrifice to show the importance of immigration reform.

Roberto Vigil, who works in the Mexico City office of the California-based immigrants rights group Hermandad Mexicana, said his group has asked some of Mexico's largest labor unions to back the protest in Mexico.

The president of the Phoenix-based Immigrants Without Borders, Elias Bermudez, also actively promoted the boycott in interviews with Mexican radio and television stations.

Mexican groups were responding.

Pablo Gonzalez, spokesman for one of Mexico's largest labor unions, the Federation of Revolutionary Workers and Farmers, said his organization will support a boycott against "at least four of the most important U.S. firms, among them Wal-Mart," Mexico's largest retailer.

Two other major labor groups _ the telephone workers' and auto workers' unions _ also were expected to join, Vigil said.

Even parts of the Mexican government have signed on to the protest.

"We are not going to be buying any products from the United States on May 1," said Lolita Parkinson, national coordinator for the National Board of State Offices on Attention for Migrants, which represents state government-run migrant aid offices.

For some, the boycott was fueled not just by debate on the immigration bill, but by long-standing resentment over the perceived mistreatment of Mexicans in the United States.

"We want to show the power we have as Mexicans," said Carlos Chavez y Pacho, vice president of the chamber of commerce in Piedras Negras, across from Eagle Pass, Texas. Chavez y Pacho is also urging Mexicans not to shop in U.S. border cities on May 1, in part to protest what he calls arrogant behavior by U.S. customs officials and border officers.

Rafael Ruiz Harrell, who writes a column in the Mexico City newspaper Metro, predicted the boycott could give rise to a broader, pan-Latino movement.

"If we could get all of Latin America, for one day, to leave the U.S. firms without customers, we would be sending the kind of clear message they seem incapable of understanding," he wrote.

Illegal aliens and the speech police (and the coming breakup of the United States?)


Three U.S. journalism groups want their fellow scribes to stop using terms "illegal immigrant," or simply "illegal" [often used as a shorthand noun], and "alien" when covering the immigration issue. It's "dehumanizing," you see. That applies especially to "illegal alien." The proper term is "undocumented people."

The National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ), the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ), and the Asian-American Journalists Association (AAJA) are leading the cry to stop saying illegals are — well, illegal.

As one of their spokesmen put it, "The words we use frame a debate, and we need to make sure those words are not loaded with baggage."

Well, okay, why stop there? Here's another idea. Maybe we should not define those who help themselves to other people's money at gunpoint as "muggers" or "bank robbers." Similarly, let us see or hear no more news reports of "embezzlers," or "white collar criminals." Those terms are so "dehumanizing," and "loaded with baggage." How about "unproven money-sharing people"? After all, "they just want a better life," right?

This political correctness is the latest outrage in the ongoing debate over whether violating the law is — guess what — illegal. If most journalists take it seriously, George Orwell's "1984" and "Animal Farm" will have morphed into the funny farm.

In fact, the Senate this past week became the funny farm when it appeared to be on the verge of approving legislation that said — I'm not making this up — that illegal aliens who have been in this country violating the law for five years or more would be rewarded with a pass toward citizenship. All would be forgiven. But those who have been violating the law for only two-to-five years, shame on them. Next time, violate the law early and often. They would have to go home and re-enter as temporary workers, albeit with a path toward citizenship. Those who are in this country illegally for less than two years would be punished for not getting in on the border-crashing racket soon enough. They would have to go home and get in line like everyone else who is dumb enough to think the laws of the United States mean what they say. Little questions like whether an honor system is sufficient to determine how long a person has been living here illegally are overlooked.

Conservatives tried to inject some measure of sanity into the bill. Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid would have none of it. Apparently convinced we do not have enough criminals already on our shores, the senator from Nevada blocked amendments such as one that would have barred American citizenship for any illegal alien convicted of a felony or three misdemeanors or who ignored a court order to leave the country.

In bowing to the criminal lobby, Reid has disgraced the Senate seat once held by the late patriot Pat McCarran, co-author of the reasonable, orderly, compassionate, and generous 1952 McCarran-Walter Immigration Law. Like Reid, McCarran — a relentless foe of communism — was a Democrat. Unlike Reid, McCarran was one of the true giants of Senate history.

The death of immigration reform (at least until after the Easter recess) was deliberate sabotage on Reid's part. On the advice of New York Senator Chuck Schumer, denying sensible amendments was aimed at denying the Republicans a victory in this election year. It was not lost on anyone that — by sheer coincidence — Schumer heads the Senate Democratic Campaign Committee. Oh! So that's why my computer's spell-check keeps trying to get me to spell his name "Schemer." One of these days, I'm going to start obeying my spell-check.

The senators also managed to kill a border security-only bill — with no "guest worker" programs.

Meanwhile, in my own backyard of Montgomery County, Maryland — whose officials are heavily influenced by a segment of the population with propellers at the top of the head — the school system has granted students community service credit for attending a rally in downtown Washington (on Monday April 10) in support of "immigrant rights" (a "right" to break the law, that is).

According to information on the Chris Core radio talk show on WMAL-AM, no such credit would be available to a student who shows up to engage in a counter-protest in support of effective border security. The "civics lesson," as school officials call it, apparently is narrowly focused on one side of the debate.

School Superintendent Jerry D. Weast just can't understand why he is getting all these angry calls from parents who have this weird off-the-wall idea that school officials should focus more on education, not political advocacy. Weast thinks this is strange because what he is doing is "consistent with how the system has operated." Alas, that's the problem. But we'll save that discussion for another day.

As you watch demonstrators carrying the Mexican flag and damning the country they say they want to be a part of, consider the "compassionate" laws in the government of the very country that in many ways is egging them on and implying that we who have problems with willful lawbreakers are bigots. Check out Frank Gaffney's archived columns on this website. Mexico's immigration laws are extremely restrictive. If we imposed similar legislation in the U.S., we would be branded as "mean-spirited." (See Gaffney-April 3-"The Mexican Solution")

Now let us get right down to the plot — and that term is not used lightly — that serves as a major driving force behind this great lawbreaking machine:

Contrary to what the mainstream media would have you believe, the National Council de La Raza — the most prominent group agitating for illegal immigration — is not simply the "Hispanic Rotary Club."

Congressman Charles Norwood has done some digging, and has unearthed chilling information that La Raza serves as a "respectable front" for radical secondary groups whose agenda includes nothing short of dismantling the United States.

Writing in Human Events, Norwood identifies a "radical racist group" as "key" in the coalition. The Georgia Republican says the "Chicano Student Movement of Aztlan (MEChA) seeks to carve a racist nation out of the American West."

MEChA was "reported to be one of the main organizers" of the street demonstrations. The lawmaker writes "MEChA and the La Raza movement teach that Colorado, California, Arizona, Texas, Utah, New Mexico, Oregon, and parts of Washington State make up the area known as Aztlan — a fictional ancestral homeland of the Aztecs before Europeans arrived in North America."

All these areas of the U.S. are to be surrendered to "La Raza," after enough immigrants — legal and illegal — can claim a majority. Miguel Perez, a key figure in Cal-State's MEChA chapter, is quoted as saying "Non-Chicanos would have to be expelled — opposition groups would be quashed because you have to keep power." All of this will happen "once Aztlan is established" at which point "ethnic cleansing would commence."

And what kind of government would emerge in "Aztlan?" Says Perez: "The ultimate ideology is the liberation of Aztlan. Communism would be closest to it."

Lest you think these are just the outer fringes of a nut faction (Every group has some shady characters in its past and unbalanced characters today), Congressman Norwood says this rhetoric comes from official MEChA chapter sites at universities all over America, including Georgetown, U. of Texas. UCLA, U. of Oregon, U. of Michigan. and U. of Colorado.

Despite the National Council of LaRaza's suspect ties, Congressman Norwood believes the majority of its members are not racist. But unless La Raza completely separates it self from MEChA and unequivocally repudiates its entire racist agenda, then the Council should be barred from receiving federal funds (Yes, it has been receiving some of your tax dollars), and barred from testifying before Congress. Also the White House "should sever all ties."

To which we would add that no self-respecting journalist will be coaxed or intimidated into ignoring this "wolf in our midst" or sugar-coating it with mealy-mouthed Orwellian language.

Immigration, yes! Colonization, no!

When people come from abroad to make a new home for themselves, and they are committed to the goal of becoming part of our nation -- that's immigration. When they come to exploit economic opportunities while proudly flaunting their determination to continue in their allegiance to a foreign flag -- that's colonization.

During the Los Angeles march, large numbers of foreigners marched proudly under the flag of a foreign country, to demand the right to live in the United States. They claim that the issue is immigration. But by their own actions, they reveal what is in fact a determined effort to force Americans to accept large foreign colonies in our midst, and to pay handsomely for the privilege of doing so. We have both the right and the moral obligation to say no.

Obviously our political leaders do not understand the real nature of the issue. In his radio address, President Bush told us that his guest-worker program is not intended to lead to citizenship for the illegal aliens in our midst. He actually seems to believe this is a point in its favor. At the same time, he and others like him want us to believe that the latest so-called immigration bill is somehow in line with the great tradition of immigration that literally created the American people. This is a lie.

In the past, the large majority of people coming to America from abroad came here to become part of the nation. They brought habits, customs and creeds that enriched the panoply of our emerging national identity, but they also accepted the challenge of becoming an integral part of it. Citizenship is the proper fruit of that kind of immigration, and that's what makes it good for America.

Accepting the presence of large numbers of people who maintain their allegiance to a foreign flag, a foreign language and a foreign culture -- and who mean to claim many of the benefits but none of the responsibilities of citizenship -- is a departure from the tradition that built this nation, and the culmination of inept policies that will end in its dissolution.

Given the destructive consequence of allowing such colonization, it is especially dismaying to see supposed moral leaders demanding that we accept it. I must assume that Cardinal Mahony means well when he encourages people to violate laws intended to enforce our immigration policies. I'm sure he honestly believes that it is morally right to help individuals in need regardless of their immigration status.

But as a Catholic leader, I must question his willingness to abandon the wisdom of Catholic moral tradition, which has always cautioned against the impetuous inclination to do good for particular individuals while bringing on greater evils for society as whole. This wisdom has been at the heart of the reasoning derived from the just war doctrine that requires, for example, opposing zealots who justify killing abortion doctors on the plea that they are saving the life of an innocent child. Their particular act saves some innocents, but at the great risk of civil violence and war that will plunge the whole society into destructive evils that endanger all its members.

True moral responsibility requires that we compare the good we may do by violating the immigration laws with the harm that will result from destroying our capacity to enforce immigration rules and regulations. Will the absence of immigration controls (in effect, open borders) lead to greater evils than the effort to enforce them?

As we ponder the response we should consider the spectacle of the major cities in many countries around the world, where the pressure of uncontrolled migration from rural to urban areas has led to excessive burdens on their infrastructure, and the development of enormous slums riddled with disease and poverty. The United States is, as it were, the urban capital of the world. Uncontrolled migration from the global hinterland will result in pressures upon our economic, social and political infrastructure that will degrade both our material well being and the always fragile fabric of our national identity.

The result will be greater poverty, greater social friction and unrest, and sharper, more irreconcilable differences in our political life. The latter will be especially true if we have permitted large communities of non-citizen workers to become a permanent feature of our national life. This would be a population of people who pay taxes and yet, as non-citizens, have no say in the political process that determines their ultimate disposition. "No taxation without representation" was the early battle-cry of political justice in America, and it still indicates the truth that representative government is part of the natural birthright of all human beings. It makes no sense to adopt policies that encourage the permanent existence of a large, disenfranchised population in our midst.

All this suggests that immigration control is prudent and necessary for the common good of the country. Moral reasoning that ignores the common good is in fact not moral at all. Cardinal Mahony and other Catholic leaders should revisit and ponder this principle of the Catholic moral tradition. If immigration control serves the common good, then effective immigration laws are appropriate and morally obligatory.

Thomas Aquinas rightly points out that law without enforcement is no law at all. Therefore, effective immigration law means effective enforcement of the laws. When Cardinal Mahony encourages citizens to ignore the laws, and thus undermine their effectiveness, he encourages them to take particular actions that, by contributing to the overall collapse of the economic, social and political infrastructure, will result in far greater misery and suffering than they purport to alleviate.

This is irresponsible, immoral and contrary to the rational requirements of Christian conscience. Christ exemplifies the truth that, for the sake of the whole, even innocent individuals ought to be willing to sacrifice themselves. Encouraging illegal immigrants to seek their own advantage by a route that undermines the common good thus represents a corruption of their respect for the principle that ought to govern their Christian consciences.

It is both unfair and dishonest to react to this analysis as if it represents some willingness to slam the door of opportunity in the face of the hopes and aspirations of less fortunate people around the world. On the contrary, the effort to develop and enforce responsible immigration policies aims to assure that the invitation to hope is not extended in ways that destroy its fulfillment. It is also intended to make sure that our policies do not aid and abet the tendency of some foreign elites to enrich themselves at the expense of their people, and then escape accountability for their viciousness by pushing the victims across the border into the United States. Is it morally right to facilitate the corruption and greed of these self-serving exploiters?

I believe that immigration in the true sense is good for America. This would mean policies aimed at assuring that by and large the people who come to America come with the intention of becoming full and responsible citizens of the republic. It also means discouraging any who think they have the right to establish foreign enclaves in our midst, in order to gain economic advantages for themselves without fully committing to help us build this free society.

Immigration, yes; colonization, no. The first prerequisite of any immigration policy, however, is to regain full control of the borders of the United States. Currently proposed legislation falls far short of what is needed to achieve this goal. Until and unless our political leaders put in place the tools and forces needed to achieve this control, responsible and moral Americans ought to oppose any measures that would signal our acceptance of the de facto colonization of our country.

President Bush's guest-worker proposal is such a measure. It may serve short-sighted business interests intent on cheapening the cost of labor in our economy; it may serve the corrupt interest of Mexican and other foreign elites seeking to relieve the pressure created by their own policies of greedy exploitation. But it does not serve the common good. Such service demands policies that give preference in immigration not just to workers seeking jobs and money, but to those who seek liberty and the responsibilities of citizenship.

Prominent local publisher deported


ST. LOUIS - The publisher of a Spanish-language newspaper has been deported, ending a five-year legal battle over her immigration status.

Cecilia Velazquez was escorted into Mexico on Friday and will be barred from re-entering the United States for 10 years, said Carl Rusnok, spokesman for the U.S. Immigration and Custom Enforcement agency.

Velazquez, 36, is publisher of Red Latina, a Spanish-language newspaper. "Red Latina" means Latin network. She also is president of Radio CuCui, a group that brings ethnic performers and commentators to WEW-AM radio.

"I'm devastated," Velazquez said from her cell phone, as she stood in Juarez, Mexico, an hour after being escorted back into her homeland. "No doubt they used me as an example."

Her attorney, Raymond R. Bolourtchi, said her departure "can only hurt and damage the Hispanic community. She was their voice."

Rusnok said Velazquez was given two weeks to return to Mexico after officials who stopped her in December 2000 in Houston determined she was "actually an intending immigrant." Velazquez had entered the country on a visitors visa.

Despite the order to leave, Velazquez remained in the country and was arrested in 2003 in St. Louis.

Though she lost a series of appeals, she was hopeful letters of support written by politicians including U.S. Sen. Jim Talent and U.S. Reps. William Lacy Clay Jr. and Russ Carnahan would stave off her deportation.

"All the big guys were trying to get a special deal for me," she said.

Lydia Padilla, president of TRC Staffing Services in St. Louis, which places Spanish-speaking workers with area employers, advertised in Red Latina.

She said the paper is the most respected in the Hispanic community, and the only local paper that is 100 percent Spanish.

"I did not know her legal status, but what I do know is she donated lots of time and money to needy causes," Padilla said.

Immigration debate irks Hispanics
‘We will vote … to give a lesson to the xenophobic crowd,’ leader says


INDIANAPOLIS – The debate over how the U.S. should treat illegal immigrants – fueled by rallies in Indianapolis, Fort Wayne and other cities across the nation – could push more Hispanic voters to the polls this year, some Hispanic leaders say.

Max Montesino, president of the Hispanic Leadership Coalition of Northeast Indiana, said he expects a backlash from immigrant voters, especially Hispanics, this November against legislators who want to remove all undocumented aliens.

“Now immigrant people are realizing they have to register and they have to vote,” he said. “I truly believe they will be surprised in November. It is really energizing the immigrant community.”

Montesino organized a rally in Fort Wayne on April 2 that drew more than 1,000 people. He said a future “gathering of reflection” will be at 5 p.m. May 1 at the Foellinger Outdoor Theatre.

He said most Hispanic Americans have a relative or friend who is undocumented.

“We will vote en masse to give a lesson to the xenophobic crowd and those in Congress who agree with them,” he said.

The Hispanic vote nationwide has lagged behind other groups. About 18 percent of Hispanics voted in the 2004 presidential election, compared with 51 percent of whites and 39 percent of blacks, according to the Pew Hispanic Center, a non-partisan research organization supported by The Pew Charitable Trusts.

In Indiana, a 2004 study by the National Association of Latino Elected Officials showed about 80,000 Hispanics are citizens and voters.

Another 80,000 are citizens but not registered to vote, said Ricardo Gambetta, director of Latino affairs for Indianapolis.

Hispanics make up about 4.4 percent of Indiana’s population, representing the fastest-growing ethnic group in the state, according to the most recent census numbers.

With the immigration debate, Hispanics may believe they have more of a stake in the outcome of elections this year, officials said.

“There is great potential,” Gambetta told the Indianapolis Star for a Friday story. “The community is becoming more active in the political process statewide.”

John Nieto-Phillips, associate professor of Latino studies at Indiana University, said the immigration bill passed by the U.S. House of Representatives, which would make felons out of undocumented immigrants, has galvanized the Hispanic community.

“It will not fade in their memories,” he said. “They will not forget.”

Frances Vegasaw, state director for Hispanic/Latino outreach at Ivy Tech Community College, agreed.

“Hispanics will come out (to vote) in numbers. I really believe that,” Vegasaw said.

Both Democrats and Republicans in Indiana have taken notice, especially after this week’s Indianapolis rally of about 20,000 people marching against the immigration bill.

“They demonstrated to the world they can organize,” said Bill Oesterle, who managed Republican Mitch Daniels’ 2004 run for governor.

Robin Winston, former chairman of the Indiana Democratic Party, saw intensity in the crowd.

“There’s too much passion and too much energy for that not to be channeled” into political action, Winston said.

Although both Allen County Democrats and Republicans said they hoped to take advantage of the expected increase in Hispanic voters, Montesino said the issue likely won’t help one party over the other.

Efrain Escobedo, director of voter engagement for the Los Angeles-based National Association of Latino Elected Officials, said the immigration issue has given “an opening to the Democrats.”

But he said Hispanic voters will choose leaders who advance their interest in other issues as well.

“We are up for grabs,” he said.

Illegal-alien activists target Lou Dobbs
'Ax AOL' campaign designed to pressure CNN parent company to fire newsman

WASHINGTON – Illegal-alien activists who have pulled off major rallies in several cities in recent weeks plan to shift part of their focus May 1 by targeting a newsman they see hurting their cause.

An "Ax AOL" campaign is being organized to coincide with a national action by various groups defending illegal immigration, but the real target of their wrath is Lou Dobbs of CNN.

"Why AOL?" asks one of the promoters of the campaign rhetorically. "Lou Dobbs is the number one money maker for CNN so he is not going anywhere as long as he makes money for CNN and right now he is making a ton of money for CNN bashing 'illegal immigration.' CNN is owned by Time Warner and Time Warner also owns AOL, which is being extensively promoted to increase its value as witnessed last week by selling 5 percent of AOL stock to Google. This 5 percent cost Google $1 billion setting a benchmark value for AOL stock. The Google-AOL deal gives AOL a valuation of $20 billion. Billionaire Time Warner shareholder Carl Icahn who controls 3 percent of Time Warner shares has been organizing a proxy battle for control of Time Warner wants to sell AOL."

But why Lou Dobbs?

According to the organizers: "Lou Dobbs has become the champion zealot of bashing 'illegal immigration' each night at CNN promoting HR 4437 as the only way of dealing with 'Broken Borders' to protect the USA. The only way to stop Lou Dobbs, the raving populist xenophobe, is to invoke 'The Achilles heel: AOL.'"

Interestingly, Jon Garrido of Hispanic News, the mastermind of the AOL campaign, believes Dobbs is too popular to take on directly.

"We could never directly muzzle Lou Dobbs because the revenue his trashing of Hispanic/Latinos generates for CNN is huge and CNN's revenue belongs to Time Warner," he writes. "The Achilles heel is AOL. If the value of AOL was to decrease dramatically because of the loss of the Hispanic/Latino market, Time Warner, and more so, Carl Icahn, would move to stop this hemorrhage. The only way to stop the hemorrhage would be to meet the demands of the Hispanic/Latino community: Remove Lou Dobbs off the air."

The organizers believe the firing of Lou Dobbs would be the death knell of the current move in Congress to pass tough border security measures and an enforcement plan to deal with the millions of illegal aliens already residing in the U.S.

"Removing Lou Dobbs off the air would completely disarm the national leader of promoting HR 4437 and would be the most powerful message that could be provided to the Congress, President Bush, 2008 presidential candidates and the entire USA," Garrido writes. "The demise of Lou Dobbs would be fatal. There would be nowhere for him to land because wherever he surfaced such as FOX, the Ax AOL campaign would follow him by simply changing our name to Ax FOX."

While Dobbs has become an almost legendary hero to Americans who feel abandoned by their government on the illegal alien issue, he is being vilified in many other quarters.

The left-leaning Media Channel isn't advocating any convoluted targeting of AOL in its anti-Dobbs campaign – just a direct boycott.

Indian-Americans have also launched their own petition to get Dobbs dumped.

The Southern Poverty Law Center, another radical group, is also attacking Dobbs – claiming his reports on immigration fail to acknowledge anti-Hispanic racism is at the root of concerns about illegal immigration.

Even someone Dobbs has had on his show as a guest commentator is getting into the act of calling for his firing by CNN. Enrique Morones, an activist from Southern California, has reportedly written a letter to the president of CNN calling for Dobbs' head.

More children discovered crossing border illegally



MEXICO CITY -- The number of children deported from Arizona after U.S. agents caught them crossing the border illegally or found them in the desert more than doubled in the first three months of 2006, Mexico's Interior Department said on Friday.

Most deportees are simply released by U.S. authorities at border crossings, but children are handed over directly to Mexico's child-welfare agency, giving Mexican authorities a much more precise count.

From January through March, Mexican authorities took charge of 3,289 deported minors at border crossings in the state of Sonora, across from Arizona, more than double the 1,566 deported in the same period of 2005.

The Interior Department statement did not give a reason for the increase in deportations of the children -- who ranged in age from a few months to 17 -- many of whom were found crossing on foot, alone or in the company of non-relatives.

However, some border analysts say they have witnessed what appears to be a general migrant rush to reach the United States. They say the migrants appear to be motivated by immigration bills under discussion in the U.S. Congress that could legalize some illegal migrants and increase border security.

In south-central Arizona, the busiest migrant-smuggling area, total detentions by the U.S. Border Patrol rose by more than 26 percent from Oct. 1, 2005, through early April, totaling 105,803 compared with 78,024 for the same period a year earlier. Along the entire border, arrests are up 9 percent in the same period.

Francisco Loureiro, the manager of an immigrant shelter in Nogales, Mexico, said that in March, 2,000 migrants stayed at the shelter -- 500 more than last year.

Loureiro said he has not seen such a rush of migrants since 1986, when the United States allowed 2.6 million illegal residents to get American citizenship.

One proposal before the U.S. Senate could legalize some of the 11 million people now illegally in the United States while tightening border security.

Some U.S. officials, however, say the rise in detentions may not necessarily mean more people are crossing, but that more are detained because of an increase in the number of Border Patrol agents.

Demonstrations on Immigration Harden a Divide

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., April 14 — Al and Diane Kitlica have not paid close attention to the immigration debate in Congress. But when more than 100,000 mostly Hispanic demonstrators marched through Phoenix this week, the Kitlicas noticed.

"I was outraged," Ms. Kitlica told J. D. Hayworth, the Republican who is her congressman, as she and her husband stopped him for 20 minutes while he was on a walk through their suburban neighborhood to complain to him about the issue.

"You want to stay here and get an education, get benefits, and you still want to say 'Viva Mexico'? It was a slap in the face," Ms. Kitlica said, adding that illegal immigrants were straining the Mesa public school where she teaches.

A few miles west, Gus Martinez, a Mexican immigrant who was moonlighting at a hot dog stand after a day installing drywall, said the protests had changed his perspective, too.

Mr. Martinez, who said he was a legal immigrant, said he also supported border security to curb illegal entry. But he had taken the day off to march earlier in the week because he believed that the foes of illegal immigration were taking aim at Hispanics as a group. The demonstrations, he said, had instilled in him a sense of power.

"It showed that our hands — Latino hands — make a difference in this country," Mr. Martinez said. "They see you are Hispanic and call you a criminal, but we are not."

As lawmakers set aside the debate on immigration legislation for their spring recess, the protests by millions around the nation have escalated the policy debate into a much broader battle over the status of the country's 11 million illegal immigrants. While the marches have galvanized Hispanic voters, they have also energized those who support a crackdown on illegal immigration.

"The size and magnitude of the demonstrations had some kind of backfire effect," said John McLaughlin, a Republican pollster who said he was working for 26 House members and seven senators seeking re-election. "The Republicans that are tough on immigration are doing well right now."

Mr. Hayworth said, "I see an incredible backlash." He has become one of the House's most vocal opponents of illegal immigration and is one of dozens of Republicans who have vowed to block the temporary-worker measure that stalled in the Senate.

The Kitlicas, who had been unaware of his views, decided to volunteer for his campaign. Mr. Hayworth, who has been singled out by Democrats in his bid for re-election, faces a challenge from a popular former Democratic mayor of Tempe, Harry E. Mitchell.

The immigration issue is cropping up in areas as far from the border as Iowa and Nebraska. In one House district in Iowa, Republican primary candidates are running television commercials competing over who is "toughest" on illegal immigration, said Amy Walters, an analyst with the nonpartisan Cook Political Report.

Representative Steve King, an Iowa Republican from another district, said his office had been flooded with angry calls about the recent marches. "It is one thing to see an abstract number of 12 million illegal immigrants," Mr. King said. "It is another thing to see more than a million marching through the streets demanding benefits as if it were a birthright." He added, "I think people resent that."

But Mr. King, who supported a House bill to restrict illegal immigrants without creating a guest-worker program, said he was also feeling new heat from the thousands of Hispanics in his district, many of whom worked in its meatpacking plants. Responding to a survey by his office, some Hispanics called him a racist for asking questions about building a wall with Mexico, or suggested a wall with Canada, he said.

The emotions around the issue are especially intense in Arizona, where thousands of illegal immigrants cross the border each month and more than a quarter of the population is Hispanic. In 2004, Hispanics accounted for about one in eight voters.

When voters approved a ballot measure that year to block access to state services for illegal immigrants, more than 40 percent of Hispanic voters supported it, according to some surveys of people leaving polling places.

But many Hispanics said opinions had changed dramatically in the past few weeks, partly because of the hostility they perceived in some proposals from Mr. Hayworth and other conservatives.

"When people are talking about shooting people who come across the border," said Harry Garewal, chief executive of the Arizona Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, "yeah, I think that causes some angst."

Leo Hernandez, assistant publisher of Prensa Hispana, a major Arizona Spanish-language newspaper, said the demonstrations had also played a role. "The Latino people in Arizona are more united," Mr. Hernandez said. "They are no more afraid; they go out into the streets."

In Scottsdale, where many employees are Hispanic but few residents are, some voters said the workplace absences on the day of the marches highlighted the importance of immigrant labor.

"If you don't get the Hispanics here working in this town, you don't have cooks in the back, you don't have people building houses," said Bruce Weinstein, an executive eating breakfast at a restaurant.

Many others, however, expressed alarm about the marches, saying the demonstrations could have been a chance to round up and deport illegal immigrants.

"They should all be ejected out of the country," said Andrew Chenot, a construction worker, who added, "They are in my country and they are on my job, and they are driving down wages."

Others here, like the Kitlicas, said the marches had only sharpened their worries that illegal immigrants from Mexico brought with them crime, financial burdens, national security risks, cultural disintegration and even diseases like drug-resistant tuberculosis — concerns echoed often by conservative talk radio hosts in the state.

Representative Hayworth said such fears were well-founded. "We have indicted felons from other societies on the loose here," he said. "You see the exponential rise of drug-resistant T.B. and other things. That is not indicting an entire culture, but it is pointing out a problem."

Mr. Hayworth recently published a book, "Whatever It Takes" (Regnery Publishing, 2006), in which he advocates enlisting agencies like the Internal Revenue Service to find illegal immigrants; arresting and deporting them all; deploying military troops on the southern border; and temporarily suspending legal immigration from Mexico.

His opponent, Mr. Mitchell, calls those ideas "unrealistic."

Randy Graf, a former Republican state legislator, is campaigning on the same border-security themes as Mr. Hayworth in his bid to succeed Representative Jim Kolbe, a Republican and a supporter of a temporary-worker program who is not running again.

Mr. Graf challenged Mr. Kolbe in the primary two years ago over the immigration issue and won 40 percent of the vote, putting him in a strong position against two more moderate Republicans in the primary.

Mike Hellon, one of the more moderate candidates in the current primary, said: "The marches have hardened positions on both sides. People who really want the border closed — who want to put troops down there — are more passionate than ever, and the other side is more sympathetic." He added, "It does escalate the risk factor for a moderate like me."

Representative Raúl M. Grijalva, an Arizona Democrat who supports a temporary-worker program that would allow illegal immigrants a path to citizenship, said that House conservatives like Mr. Hayworth remained a major obstacle to such legislation. "That is the oil in the water," Mr. Grijalva said.

But with the Hispanic electorate set to swell as the children of immigrants come of age, Mr. Grijalva said that history was on the other side.

"You might be getting a momentary bump," he said, "but in the long run you are going to lose."

US immigration debate opens up great divide in Republican party
Yet again, a key issue for businesses has been turned into an internal political battle, pitting social conservatives against more economically liberal voices



WHILE the most visible reaction after proposed reforms to US immigration laws, stalled in Congress last week, was the hundreds of thousands of mostly Latino demonstrators drawn onto the streets, behind the scenes most US business leaders were equally disappointed.

Most US business leaders and lobby groups have vigorously supported the Bush administration's push for reforms that would legalise the residency and work status of most illegal immigrants, and put many on a path to US citizenship.

There are an estimated 11 million people who live and work illegally in the US, up from an estimated 3 million in 1985.

Over recent years, despite increased border security and heavy spending on fences, aircraft patrols and fancy detection technologies, the annual inflow is estimated to have hovered around 850,000.

As these individuals have become integrated into the economy, many industries have become dependent on them.

This is particularly true of labour-intensive areas such as agriculture, low-tech manufacturing, hotels and hospitality, residential construction and domestic services, where unskilled or semi-skilled illegal immigrants often form the backbone of the labour force.

Firms in these sectors have warned of the economic disruption that would follow if laws were changed to force employers to scrutinise the credentials of would-be workers more closely, and to increase penalties on companies found to be employing illegal workers.

This would be a radical departure from the current environment, where the federal Government, more or less, ignores breaches of the immigration rules by businesses that hire these workers, in what is a tacit acknowledgement of economic reality.

But there has also been more general business support for the reforms proposed by the White House, which would have created a new category of legal guest workers, and allowed the majority of the illegals already in the US to stay and eventually become citizens if they could present a solid work and tax-paying history.

This has partly been for the usual reasons that business groups support immigration. As in Australian, US businesses see it as a way to expand the domestic market, alleviate skills or labour shortages where they arise, and help keep wage costs down -- though they rarely admit to the last.

Of course alleged downward pressure on wages across the bottom rungs of the US labour force, due to availability of low-cost unskilled immigrant workers, is a prime rallying point for opponents of the Bush reforms such as unions who claim they want to protect US living standards.

As it turns out, empirical evidence for the impact of illegal immigration on US wages is mixed, but mostly suggests the impact is minimal, even for wages paid to unskilled Americans.

But business trade and lobby groups have also rallied in force behind the immigration reforms for another reason: because, yet again, the debate has turned a key economic issue for businesses into a battle between the worst instincts of the socially conservative, insular wing of the Republican Party and its more economically liberal business-oriented strands.

Business has lost a series of these battles since 2000 on the budget, on many trade issues, on tax and social security reform, and more generally on the domestic policy priorities of the ascendant Republican party. This time, on immigration reform, the prospects seemed brighter, not least because the President himself was championing the need for change, and forcefully advocating a set of business-friendly answers, at least in relation to the issues around illegal immigrants.

The other half of US immigration policy, the part which deals with legal entry of skilled or technical workers and attempts to meet economic objectives, has largely not been addressed in the current debate, and remains a shambles. Of course, any US debate over immigration after September 11 has also been heavily focused on the issue of border security.

Unsurprisingly, despite taking a tough stance on such issues, this is where the administration's hoped-for reforms started to unravel.

Tub-thumping Republicans from deep red states soon latched onto the idea that an amnesty for illegals was not only encouragement for those who had broken the law, and a betrayal of the US's right to control its borders - but also a potential national-security threat.

These political instincts led to a push from a broad spectrum of the Republican Party for new laws to criminalise illegal aliens, crack down even harder at the borders, and force businesses to play a larger part in preventing illegals from gaining a toehold in the US economy.

Legislation to that effect was passed by the House of Representatives, and must now be reconciled with the watered-down version of the administration's proposed reforms that were passed in the Senate. While there is still plenty of time for a compromise, few watchers in Washington DC expect the eventual outcome to meet many of the original aspirations of the administration and the business community.

This is despite the frantic last-minute lobbying over the past week from a broad range of business groups, from the US Chamber of Commerce all the way down to trade associations representing nurseries and produce vendors.

The Republicans have much to lose if the reactionary wing of the party gets its way - not only the support of economic realists in the business community, but also some of the increasingly solid support from Latino voters the Republican party has won over the past decade. While it would be a mistake to assume Latinos, who are the US's fastest-growing minority group, favour lenience for illegal immigrants (in fact the reverse is more often true, according to the pollsters), they have deserted the Republican side in droves before at the first hint that it favoured racially charged policies.

In California, Latino disgust at Republican policies, which seemed to be directed largely against their communities, paved the way for the state's transformation into a Democrat stronghold through the 1990s.

Little wonder that the Governator has come out forcefully in favour of bringing illegal immigrants into the mainstream, and against the more draconian policies advocated by the less tolerant within his party.

The most important fallout from the immigration debate will come from within the political realm. But amid those angry exchanges, also keep an eye on the business reaction, where the way the Republican Party has handled the issue will likely become yet another driver of disappointment with its domestic policy agenda and disgruntlement with the party's social conservatives.

Immigration consternation
Employers divided as U.S. Chamber promotes compromise bill, powerful small-business group sits on the sidelines

U.S. Senators will get an earful about immigration reform between now and April 27, when leaders will try to revive a compromise bill that fell apart amid partisan procedural squabbles.

As Latinos hold mass rallies across America and anti-immigrant Minutemen patrol the Mexican border, business groups are lobbying senators to follow through on legislation that would ensure employers continue to have access to a huge pool of unskilled labor.

The lobbying effort is being led by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and associations representing construction companies, restaurants and other industries that employ thousands of immigrants.

The most powerful group representing small businesses is sitting on the sidelines, however. Members of the National Federation of Independent Business are divided over immigration reform. While 86% think it should be a high priority, they're evenly split over the key issue of whether illegal immigrants should be given a chance to earn U.S. citizenship.

The Senate compromise would allow illegal immigrants who have been in the United States two years or more to obtain temporary work visas and eventually become U.S. citizens if they meet certain conditions. The bill passed by the House focused only on improved border security and stronger enforcement of immigration laws.

Small businesses are more concerned about the cost of illegal immigrants to taxpayers than they are about national security, disrespect for the law or job losses for native-born Americans, according to NFIB's survey.

"Our members do want to see something done," says Patrick Lyden, manager of legislative affairs for NFIB.

But, he adds, small businesses "don't want to be the front lines of enforcement." That's the federal government's job, he says.
'Devil in the details'

Verifying the identification of a job applicant would impose a moderate burden on small businesses, the NFIB survey found, but that burden could be reduced if an electronic system were provided.

The House immigration reform bill requires employers to submit their employees' Social Security numbers to the federal government, which would compare these numbers to government databases. The government would then notify the employer whether the individual is eligible to work. This system is being tested in a voluntary pilot program involving a few thousand businesses.

Rep. James Sensenbrenner, R-Wis., who authored the House bill, says the NFIB survey shows that small business owners think this system is "workable and not a burden."

Lyden, however, says, "the devil is in the details." The system may be simple, he says, but it may produce inaccurate results, especially when it's expanded to millions of businesses. Business groups think the system's kinks need to be worked out before employers are subjected to stiff fines for violations. They're likely to get what they want from the Senate.
Window may have closed

That's if the Senate passes a bill, however. The Senate spent two weeks on immigration reform before its Easter break, and faces a crowded legislative agenda when it returns.

Some supporters of the Senate bill fear they've lost their window of opportunity this year.

But Laura Reiff, an immigration attorney with Greenberg Traurig who co-chairs the Essential Worker Immigration Coalition, says the compromise reached by the Senate is "still there."

"We just have to make it stick over recess ... make sure people don't backtrack on their deal commitments," she says.

EWIC co-chair John Gay, a senior vice president at the National Restaurant Association, hopes "tempers will calm down" by the time senators return to Washington. Republicans and Democrats blamed each other for the impasse that developed over how many amendments could be offered to the bill.

Reiff is optimistic the Senate will pass a bill, but she is less confident the House and Senate will resolve their differences. Negotiations between the two chambers may have to wait until after the November congressional elections, she says.

If no immigration reform bill is enacted this year, "we'll be back at it again next year," Gay says.

The demand for unskilled labor will continue to grow, he says, as the American-born work force ages and education levels rise.

"The reality is our demographic trends are demanding a certain type of worker," says Ben Johnson, director of the Immigration Policy Center, a division of the American Immigration Law Foundation. "Immigrants are younger and less educated. They are what we are not."

Some provisions of immigration measure seen as unworkable


WASHINGTON - The sweeping immigration bill the Senate will tackle upon its return to Washington next week has been hailed as a compromise that marries tough border enforcement with humane treatment of illegal immigrants.

Yet it contains provisions that immigration experts and even many lawmakers say are highly unrealistic, and that were inserted largely to placate tough-on-immigration senators and win enough support for passage.

Roughly 12 million illegal immigrants would have to pass background checks before receiving immigration papers under the bill. But a government bureaucracy already struggling with its workload would perform the checks, and experts say these new demands would overwhelm the system.

In addition, undocumented immigrants who have been in the United States for two to five years, no matter where they live, would have to travel back to a port-of-entry on the U.S. border, such as El Paso, Texas, and go back across the border to apply for guest worker status. Upon performing this so-called touchback, these several million immigrants could immediately return to their U.S. homes.

To experts who have followed the immigration debate, these examples demonstrate that lawmakers have tossed practical considerations aside to craft a compromise that could pass the Senate. The result is a bill that seems as much an exercise in legislative expediency as an attempt to reform the nation's broken immigration system.

Although the bill stalled shortly before Congress left town on April 7, it will form the basis of talks senators will resume later this month. The background check and touchback provisions stand a good chance of being in any final bill because they are important for winning support from lawmakers opposed to legislation that could be seen as granting blanket amnesty to those in the U.S. illegally.

The touchback measure, especially, has come in for ridicule.

"You create the illusion that you're being tough by saying we're going to do background checks, we're going to make some people go home and come back," said Steve Cammarota of the Center for Immigration Studies, a Washington-based think tank that advocates stronger immigration controls. "It's not meaningful. ... It doesn't pass the straight-face test."

On this, both those who favor stricter immigration controls and those who advocate for immigrant rights agree.

"It's completely optics - it really is," said Jeanne Butterfield, director of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, based in Washington. "The Republicans need some way to say this is not an amnesty. And the easiest way they think to say that is to say, `Look, we're requiring people to leave the country.'"

"It's kind of like the act of crossing over the border and going out cleanses them and turning around 2 feet over the border and coming back gives them this new status," she said.

When Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., puzzled aloud through the concept of a touchback at a Senate Judiciary Committee meeting two weeks ago, he prompted laughter from the audience when he said: "Then for reasons I cannot explain you have to go touch your toe in the Rio Grande and come back into the U.S. and touch base. I don't quite understand what that move is unless it is for the travel agents of America."

Republican supporters challenged Durbin's comments.

"It is thought that by going back to some place, El Paso illustratively, they'd have to apply like everybody else," as do other would-be immigrants outside the country, Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., the committee's chairman, told Durbin.

At the same meeting, Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, another touchback supporter, said: "I disagree with Senator Durbin that this is a matter of sticking your toe in the Rio Grande and coming back as fast you can. ... It is designed to be responsive to those people who in my state and elsewhere tell me they would view an absence of a return requirement - a realistic one, not just a trivial one or a wink and a nod - as an amnesty and something they do not support and they are urging me not to support."

But even a fellow Republican, Sen. Jon Kyl of Arizona, who has generally agreed with Cornyn during the immigration debate, disparaged the idea of a touchback, describing it during a news conference as "artificial and meaningless."

While the touchback provision has struck many as bizarre, most people see the requirement of a background check as serious.

But the agency responsible for conducting immigration background checks, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, which is part of the Homeland Security Department, is already dealing with a large backlog of immigration applications requiring background checks.

As of last June, the agency had reduced what had been a backlog of 3.8 million immigration applications to 1.2 million. But the agency is dependent on the FBI for criminal checks.

During the background checks, names and frequently fingerprints are checked against information in criminal and sometimes intelligence databases maintained by U.S. agencies. Background checks of applicants in their home countries are virtually non-existent.

According to a November report by the Government Accountability Office, the FBI can sometimes take months to complete a background check, especially if an immigration applicant's name "matches the name or alias of someone with a criminal history." Adding 12 million applications to the backlog could create a bureaucratic nightmare.

While the checks at times get bogged down, at other times they're too cursory, raising homeland security concerns, said Michael Maxwell, a whistleblower and former director of the Citizenship and Immigration Services' Office of Security and Investigations.

The same week the Senate immigration compromise was announced before it hit a wall, Maxwell testified before a House International Relations subcommittee about his former agency, which sounded dysfunctional.

To meet a goal of eliminating its backlog by the end of September, he said, agency employees often weren't waiting for background checks to be completed before approving immigration applications.

"I was told as recently as three weeks ago," Maxwell said in written testimony, "that district offices and service centers are holding competitions and offering a variety of rewards, including cash bonuses, time off, movie tickets and gift certificates, to employees ... with the fastest processing times. The quality of processing is not a factor; only the quantity of closed applications matters."

The concern is that the agency may already be permitting individuals into the United States who are threats to commit crimes or terrorism. Giving the agency another 12 million applications to process would just make matters worse, critics say.

Caroline Espinosa, a spokeswoman for NumbersUSA, an immigration-control group based in the Washington suburbs, said, "No matter where you stand on this issue, (Citizenship and Immigration Services) is just incapable of processing what they have now, much less the tens of millions that would be thrown at them should any of the Senate bills pass and become law."

GOP releases immigration ad

WASHINGTON, DC, United States (UPI) -- Republicans Monday mounted a new offensive over immigration reform, releasing a Spanish-language ad lambasting U.S. congressional Democrats.

The ad accuses Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., of obstructionism and accuses House Democrats of attempting to turn illegal immigrants into felons.

The ad is airing on Hispanic stations in Reno, Nev., Las Vegas, Phoenix and Tucson.

The 60-second ad says terrorists and drug smugglers are crossing U.S. borders and though Republicans are working to plug the holes, Democrats are sitting by idly or actively blocking efforts.

'Democrat Leader Harry Reid let us down. Harry Reid played politics and blocked our leaders from working together,' the announcer intones.

It urges: 'Call Harry Reid at (702) 388-5020. Tell him to stop playing with our futures.'

Ga. governor signs strict immigration bill

By SHANNON MCCAFFREY
ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER

ATLANTA -- Georgia's governor signed a sweeping immigration bill Monday that supporters and critics say gives the state some of the toughest measures against illegal immigrants in the nation.

"I want to make this clear: we are not, Georgia's government is not, and this bill is not, anti-immigrant," Gov. Sunny Perdue said at the signing.

"We simply believe that everyone who lives in our state needs to abide by our laws."

The law requires verification that adults seeking many state-administered benefits are in the country legally. It sanctions employers who knowingly hire illegal immigrants and mandates that companies with state contracts check the immigration status of employees.

The law also requires police to check the immigration status of people they arrest.

The measure is believed to be the first comprehensive immigration package to make it through a statehouse this session, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

Many of the new law's provisions will not take effect until July 1, 2007.

The bill drew protests at Georgia's state Capitol and prompted a daylong work stoppage by thousands of immigrants.

Tisha Tallman, regional counsel for the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund, said she was studying potential legal challenges to the bill.

The new law will not affect emergency medical care and educational benefits for those in kindergarten through 12th grade, which federal courts have said must be provided regardless of immigration status.

Exemptions were also added for some other services like prenatal care and the treatment of communicable diseases.

The move to tighten rules in Georgia comes as lawmakers in Washington wrestle with competing proposals to shore up controls at the border, create a guest worker program and create a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants already in the United States.

Outside the Capitol on Monday, a few hundred supporters of the legislation applauded loudly when word came that Perdue was signing the proposal.

The crowd waved American flags and cheered as state Rep. Melvin Everson, one of the Georgia House's two black Republicans, denounced illegal immigration as a cancer and proclaimed: "The last time I checked, America was the land of English - not Spanish."

And they hollered as Republican state Sen. Chip Rogers, the bill's author, called it "the strongest single bill in America dealing with illegal immigration - bar none."

At the bill signing, Rogers said he has been approached by lawmakers from South Carolina and Colorado who were interested in crafting similar proposals for their states.

Mexican police kill man in illegals raid
Officer apparently mistook victim for Central American

Mexican police killed a man near Mexico City in a raid on illegal immigrants from Central America, sparking the anger of local residents, who overturned and smashed two immigration service trucks.

The man fatally shot in the town Tultitlan on the outskirts of Mexico City apparently was mistaken for a Central American, the Associated Press reported.

Local residents said the victim, Robert Lugo, was a construction worker whose dark skin and work clothes likely made him appear to be an illegal immigrant. Witnesses said Lugo was shot at close range and was not running from police or trying to confront them.

Tultitlan is a frequent stopping point for Central Americans who enter Mexico illegal and try to make their way north to the United States by train.

Mexican police, who regularly conduct raids in the town, often abuse the illegals before releasing them without charges, local residents told the Associated Press.

"If you're carrying any money, they take it from you; federal, local police, all of them," said Carlos Lopez, 28, an illegal immigrant from Guatemala City.

Jose Ramos, 18, of El Salvador, agreed, saying, "If you're on a bus, they pull you off and search your pockets and if you have any money, they keep it and say 'Get out of here.'"

As WorldNetDaily columnist Larry Elder pointed out, a United Nations human rights commissioner recently said Mexico "is one of the countries where illegal immigrants are highly vulnerable to human rights violations and become victims of degrading sexual exploitation and slavery-like practices, and are denied access to education and health care."

When Mexican authorities catch illegal aliens, they typically place them overnight in a detention center, then bus or fly them back to their country of origin.

Elder said that although Mexico militarized its border and deported 203,128 illegal immigrants in 2004, many illegals get through by bribing corrupt military and police.

Illegal aliens recruit workers

SASABE, Mexico -- A growing number of U.S. employers in need of cheap labor are turning to illegal workers to recruit friends and relatives back home, and to smugglers to find job seekers.
    "It continues to become clear who controls immigration: It's not governments, but rather the market," said Jorge Santibanez, director of the Tijuana think tank Colegio de la Frontera Norte.
    When Pedro Lopez Vazquez crossed illegally into the United States last week, he already had a job.
    His future employer even paid $1,000 for a smuggler to help Mr. Vazquez make his way from the central Mexican city of Puebla to Aspen, Colo.
    "We're going to Colorado to work in carpentry because we have a friend who was going to give us a job," Mr. Vazquez said.
    Mr. Vazquez, 41, was interviewed along the Arizona border after being deported twice by the U.S. Border Patrol. He said he would keep trying until he got to Aspen.
    His story is not unusual.
    Darcy Tromanhauser of the nonprofit law project Nebraska Appleseed said companies in need of workers rely on the underground employment networks to "pass along the information more effectively than billboards."
    "It started out more explicitly, where [meatpacking] companies used to have buses to transport people to come up, and they would advertise directly in Mexico," she said. "Now I think that happens more informally."
    At the same time, it has become less risky for companies to recruit illegal aliens. Since the September 11, 2001, terror attacks, U.S. prosecution of employers who hire such workers has dwindled to a trickle as the government puts its resources toward national security.
    The few cases that are prosecuted, however, highlight how lucrative a business recruiting undocumented workers has become.
    In one case, a single smuggler purportedly earned $900,000 over 15 months placing 6,000 migrants in jobs at Chinese restaurants across the upper Midwest.
    Shan Wei Yu, a 51-year-old Chinese-American, was sentenced in December to nine years in federal prison on charges involving the transportation of 40 of those migrants. Investigations involving the others continue.
    Rick Hilzendager, special agent for Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Grand Forks, N.D., said Yu connected 6,000 migrants from Latin America with jobs in Chinese restaurants in Illinois, Michigan, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin.
    Based in Yu's home in McKinney, Texas, the Great Texas Employment Agency placed ads in Chinese-language newspapers in the Chicago area offering cheap labor from Latin America, investigators said.
    Yu sent a recruiter with Spanish interpreters to find illegal aliens in Dallas willing to be fry cooks and dishwashers, Mr. Hilzendager said. A team made up mostly of illegal Chinese aliens rented cars and drove them up.
    Yu charged a $150 finder's fee for each illegal while the drivers earned $300 per worker. Restaurant owners deducted the $450 from workers' first-month paychecks of $1,000.
    Nick Chase, assistant U.S. attorney in North Dakota, said Yu even offered to replace workers free of charge if one left within two weeks of starting.
    "It was a 2-for-1 special -- like a pizza," Mr. Chase said. "Everything about it was ugly."
    The case broke open in August 2004 after two Mexican illegal aliens working at the Buffet House in Grand Forks fled poor conditions and were picked up along a highway by Border Patrol agents.
    Many of the drivers involved in the scheme were deported to China. Two North Dakota restaurant owners were sentenced to four months each for harboring illegal aliens.
    But many illegal aliens, and many employers, say the recruiters provide a valuable service. Sergio Sosa, who organizes Nebraska meatpackers, said many are seen as heroes in the workers' Mexican hometowns.
    Mr. Sosa, speaking by telephone from Omaha, said that in the 1990s, companies bused illegal aliens from the U.S.-Mexico border, paying them room and board plus salaries of $100 a week. But after a government crackdown, they began to rely more on their workers to recruit friends and family back in Mexico.
    "One of the meatpacking supervisors is from Michoacan, and most of the people working for him come from his town," Mr. Sosa said. "There's no official recruiting -- it's more internal through family."
    Migrants setting out along the border confirmed his account. Guadalupe Mendez, 26, said her sister found her work as a seamstress in Los Angeles. Lorenzo Garcia Ruiz, 38, said friends arranged a gardening job for him in Kentucky.
    To make a real dent in the network, the U.S. government would need to go after employers or make them pay the costs of legalizing workers, migration activists say.
    Investigators say fake documents make it difficult to prove an employer has knowingly hired an undocumented worker. Businesses argue that employers aren't equipped to spot fraud and warn that more investigations could lead to workplace discrimination.

 Hundreds seized in immigration raids
Managers, employees of pallet maker arrested in several states

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Federal immigration authorities rounded up more than 1,000 illegal immigrants at dozens of sites and charged nine individuals of the firm that employed them, federal law enforcement officials announced Wednesday.

Seven current and former managers of IFCO Systems, which has offices in several states, were arrested and charged in connection with the employment of illegal immigrants, said U.S. Attorney Glenn Suddaby in Albany, New York.

Suddaby said two lower level employees were also charged in the case.

The action against IFCO Systems -- an industry leader in the manufacture of wooden pallets, crates and containers -- came as Homeland Security and Justice Department officials prepared to announce steps to toughen internal enforcement of the nation's immigration laws.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials said Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff and other Bush administration officials and a federal prosecutor will appear at the agency's Washington headquarters Thursday. They will announce the new strategy aimed at employers and disclose the results of the enforcement actions targeting IFCO Systems.

Customs officials said agents made more than a thousand arrests in nearly 40 locations including Houston, Texas; Cincinnati, Ohio; Phoenix, Arizona; and Albany, New York.

A customs official said federal authorities checked a "sample" of 5,800 IFCO employee records last year and found that 53 percent had faulty Social Security numbers.

"They were using Social Security numbers of people that were dead, of children or just different individuals that did not work at IFCO," Immigration and Customs agency chief Julie Myers told CNN.

"The Social Security Administration had written IFCO over 13 times and told them, 'Listen, You have a problem. You have over a thousand employees that have faulty Social Security numbers. And we consider that to be a big problem.' And IFCO did not do anything about it," Myers said.

Myers said a yearlong investigation revealed that IFCO managers had induced illegal immigrants to work there, telling some of them to doctor W-2 tax forms or saying that they did not need to fill out any documentation at all.

Myers and Suddaby will join Chertoff for Thursday's announcement.

Immigration legislation pending in Congress would increase penalties for companies that employ illegal immigrants.

The strictest immigration measures proposed have spurred a series of demonstrations by opponents nationwide in recent weeks. On Wednesday, hundreds of high school students protested at the Colorado Capitol in support of illegal immigrants, The Associated Press reported.

As public concern over illegal immigration has grown, federal law enforcement officials have sought to tighten enforcement of laws against employment of illegal immigrants. The charges include money laundering, harboring immigrants, illegal immigrant employment and wire fraud.

"It used to be in these cases that they amounted mainly to a slap on the wrist or a small civil fine," Myers told CNN. "We're now focusing on criminal cases and bringing as many criminal charges as we can when we find employers that blatantly violate work site enforcement laws."

Asked if senior managers knew or should have known about the alleged violations, Myers said, "There's no allegation of that at this time. It's certainly an ongoing investigation. I will tell you, though, that we are troubled by some of the things that we've seen at IFCO."

She said the company is cooperating with the investigation.

The criminal complaint against the seven managers charges them with conspiracy to transport, harbor, and employ illegal immigrants for private gain.

The conspiracy charge carries a maximum penalty of up to 10 years in prison for each illegal immigrant, officials said.

IFCO Systems, based in Germany, with more than 40 offices across the U.S., issued a statement late Wednesday acknowledging the federal action.

"IFCO Systems is proud to be an equal opportunity employer and is committed to creating a workplace free of discrimination," the company said. "It is our policy to comply with all federal and state employee requirements."

But the IFCO statement did not directly address the charges.

"Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials today conducted employee background checks at a number of IFCO facilities across the country. We are cooperating fully with representatives from ICE and hope to have this matter resolved as soon as possible," the statement said.

Proposed work boycott splits immigration activists


WASHINGTON - Just weeks after huge pro-immigration marches across the nation to protest congressional proposals to get tough on illegal immigrants, a split has developed in the movement over whether to embrace a planned May 1 work and school boycott by undocumented workers and their supporters.

Activists in Chicago, where a large demonstration is planned that day, said Wednesday they aren't joining the call for a boycott, and leaders of several immigrant-advocacy groups at a news conference in Washington said they opposed the plan as well.

The advocates in Washington said the timing for a boycott is wrong since it is scheduled to take place shortly after Congress returns from its spring recess. Senate leaders plan to resume work on immigration-reform legislation upon their return, having failed to pass legislation before their break.

At the Washington news conference, concern was apparent that a boycott in which millions of immigrant workers stay away from their jobs could trigger an anti-immigrant backlash. That could destroy any slim chance that the immigrant groups, already facing an uphill fight, might win approval in an election year for the kind of legislation they want that would give millions of those here illegally a path to citizenship.

Straining to show their disagreement over the idea of a May 1 boycott without seeming to criticize the boycott's proponents, the immigration advocates said there was unity in the movement's overall goals despite disagreements over tactics.

"We believe that the boycott and the strike is a legitimate tool that we need to utilize and we support it, but not right now because we believe right now the ball is in the hands of the Senate," said Gustavo Torres, executive director of CASA de Maryland.

His group helped organize the April 10 march in Washington that drew between 100,000 and 200,000 people to the National Mall.

Advocates in Chicago, where police estimated that 100,000 demonstrated in March, said they were discouraging any boycott May 1 and want workers to seek employers' permission to miss work in order to attend the march.

At a news conference in Chicago's Pilsen neighborhood, activist Martin Unzueta said groups have been distributing letters for workers to present their bosses, politely asking for the day off.

Joshua Hoyt, executive director of the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, echoed that approach at the Washington news conference.

"We're encouraging people to arrange their schedules so they can come to the march in the afternoon and participate to lift up the contribution of immigrant workers," Hoyt said.

Still, the idea of a May 1 boycott, which supporters have called a "Day Without Immigrants," has fired the imagination of many undocumented immigrants and their supporters.

The boycott, whose supporters hope will also lead to illegal immigrants and their supporters not spending money that day, has been widely discussed in the Spanish-language media and Latino communities. Its supporters say the idea has such momentum that it would be impossible to stop.

"May 1 is a decentralized action that has really taken on a life of its own," said Carlos Alvarez, a spokesman with the Los Angeles chapter of Act Now to Stop War and End Racism (ANSWER), which has contributed grassroots organizing to the immigration demonstrations.

At a news conference, Chicago organizers said that while they rejected calls for a boycott, they did not oppose that tactic in general.

Jorge Mujica, a journalist and member of the March 10 Movement organizing committee, said organizers want to save that tactic as a "last resort" if Congress is close to passing a final immigration bill that does not provide a clear path to U.S. citizenship for illegal immigrants.

In that scenario, Chicago organizers said they might call for a lengthy general strike or boycott, not just a one-day event.

Jaime Contreras, chairman of the National Capital Immigrant Coalition, said organizers in the Washington metropolitan area were asking those wishing to participate on May 1 to attend events planned for after work and school hours.

"You're not always going to have agreement in a movement," he said. "Malcolm X and Martin Luther King never agreed until the end, right?

"You're always going to have the same thing here . . . ," he said. "We want to make sure that we have unity at least around real immigration reform and (against) HR 4437," he said, referring to legislation approved by the House in December.

Critics say that legislation, which focuses on immigration enforcement, would make undocumented immigrants felons for the fact that they're living in the United States. It would also increase border enforcement with construction of a 700-mile-long fence along the U.S.-Mexican border and step up work site crackdowns.

Immigrant advocates have been lobbying hard to keep the Senate from passing a bill as draconian as they view the House-passed measure. They also are seeking language in a Senate version that would provide a path to legalization and eventual citizenship for many of the estimated 12 million illegal immigrants in the U.S.

Opponents of such legalization have disparaged such a step as an amnesty, a reward for people who broke the law by illegally crossing the U.S. border and jumped ahead of those who have been waiting to enter the U.S. legally

A work and school boycott might not only alienate members of Congress but many Americans, suggested Angela Salas, executive director of the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles.

"It is critical for us as we move forward that we're also embraced by the American public," Salas said.

Organizers of the large immigration marches that have taken place nationally in recent weeks have been sensitive to the potential for backlash.

The first large marches, where many marchers waved Mexican and other Latin American flags, drew criticisms that illegal immigrants weren't sufficiently loyal to the U.S. The next marches featured many more U.S. flags and many fewer Latin American ones.

Simcox ultimatum to Bush: `Build fence or Minutemen will'

Minuteman border watch leader Chris Simcox has a message for President Bush: Build new security fencing along the border with Mexico or private citizens will.

Simcox said Wednesday that he's sending an ultimatum to the president, through the media, "You can't get through to the president any other way," to deploy military reserves and the National Guard to the Arizona border by May 25.

Or, Simcox said, by the Memorial Day weekend Minuteman Civil Defense Corps volunteers and supporters will break ground to start erecting fencing privately.

"We have had landowners approach," Simcox said in an interview. "We've been working on this idea for a while. We're going to show the federal government how easy it is to build these security fences, how inexpensively they can be built when built by private people and free enterprise."

Simcox said a half-dozen landowners along the Arizona-Mexico border have said they will allow fencing to be placed on their borderlands, and others in California, Texas and New Mexico have agreed to do so as well.

"Certainly, as with everything else, we're only able to cover a small portion of the border," Simcox said. "The state and federal government have bought up most of the land around the border. I suspect that's why we'll never get control of the border."

But he said the plan is to put up secure fencing that truly will be an effective deterrent, and to show how easily it can be accomplished.

Simcox gave this description of the envisioned barrier-and-fencing complex:

Start with a 6-foot deep trench so a vehicle can't crash through; behind it, roll of concertina (coiled, razor-edged barbed wire), in front of a 15-foot high heavy-gauge steel mesh fence angled outward at the top.

Behind the fence will be a 60- to 70-foot wide unpaved but graded dirt road, along with inexpensive, mounted video cameras that can be monitored from home computers. On the other side of the road will be a second, 15-foot fence, with more concertina wire on its outside.

"It's a very simple, effective design based on feedback we've had from Border Patrol and the military," Simcox said. "It's a fence that can be built on the cheap, effective and secure."

Simcox said supporters will try to build the fencing with volunteer labor. Surveyors and contractors have offered to help with the design and survey work, he said, and some have said they will provide heavy equipment.

Simcox said those involved in the planning hope to keep costs to between $125 and $150 a foot.

Access to land literally on the border is an issue because so much is state-leased trust property or federally owned, he said.

"You may have to deal with a situation where private property owners erect their own fences and may be faced with the president sending the National Guard to prevent them from protecting their private property," Simcox said.

He said the Minuteman plan is "to keep turning up the heat" until President Bush has to respond somehow.

Buses used in pro-immigration rally burned

The owner of a bus line who provided free transportation to some of the people attending a pro-immigration rally last week said today that three of his buses were burned overnight while they sat in a Doraville parking area.

Carlos Ochoa, who owns Royal Bus Lines, said he was notified by employees about 7 a.m. that the 20-passenger buses he keeps in a private parking lot off Church Street had burned.

"I would not want to believe that this happened because of the march," said Ochoa, who offered six buses to provide free transportation to the April 10 rally in Atlanta that was part of a nationwide protest against federal immigration legislation.

"But looking at the buses like this, makes me feel sad," said Ochoa, a a naturalized citizen from Colombia. "At the same time, it gives me courage to continue what we are trying to do" in supporting the Hispanic community's efforts to fight proposed tougher federal laws against illegal immigration.

Two of Ochoa's drivers live in a house across the street from the parking lot, which is surrounded by chain-link fence.

Miguel Tercero, one of the drivers, said the son of his housemate heard a noise about 12:45 a.m., possibly from a tire exploding, and went out to see what was going on. He saw the burning buses, and police and firefighters at the scene.

"It is a very difficult and hard thing; it makes you wonder what is happening," said Tercero, a 54-year-old naturalized citizen from Honduras.

Royal's bright yellow buses are most familiar on Buford Highway. Ochoa said the 6-year-old company serves riders in the Lindbergh area of Atlanta, Sandy Springs and Doraville.

Ochoa said one of his buses was torched in the same storage yard last year. He said police determined it was arson but no arrests have been made.

Frist says he will revive immigration bill
In nod to conservatives, senator to seek money for border protection

WASHINGTON - Majority Leader Bill Frist intends to seek Senate passage of immigration legislation by Memorial Day, hoping to revive a bill that tightens border security while giving millions of illegal immigrants a chance at citizenship, Republican leadership aides said Friday.

In a gesture to conservative critics of the measure, Frist and other Republicans also intend to seek roughly $2 billion in immediate additional spending for border protection.

The aides said the money would allow for training of Border Patrol agents, construction of detention facilities for immigrants caught entering the country illegally, the purchase of helicopters and surveillance aircraft and construction of a fence in high-traffic areas.

The aides spoke on condition of anonymity, saying they did not want to pre-empt a formal announcement.

“The goal here is to make sure that the Senate does act on this problem,” said one of the aides.

Protests, political bickering
Frist’s decision signals a determination by Republicans to press ahead toward passage of election-year legislation. The issue has triggered large, peaceful street protests by immigrants’ rights supporters as well as internal disputes in both political parties and partisan bickering.

A sweeping immigration bill was gridlocked as lawmakers left town two weeks ago after Frist and Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid of Nevada failed to agree on a procedure for voting on amendments sought by Republicans opposed to the bill. Supporters of the measure claimed at the time they had as many as 70 votes for the bill.

President Bush has repeatedly urged Congress to approve a bill that tightens border security at the same time it addresses the problem of the estimated 11 million men, women and children in the country illegally.

House Republicans have passed a bill that is limited to border security, but leaders have recently signaled they would be receptive to broader legislation.

The measure at the center of the Senate stalemate would provide for stronger border security, regulate the future entry of foreign workers and create a complex new set of regulations for the estimated 11 million immigrants in the country illegally. Officials said an estimated 9 million of them, those who could show they had been in the United States for more than two years, would eventually become eligible for citizenship under the proposal.

Critics of the measure argue it amounts to amnesty, and they have worked over the past two weeks to undermine its support. But Bush has made it clear he wants legislation, and some Republicans hope they can send him a bill and gain credit with voters increasingly dissatisfied with Congress.

Billions more for border security
The attempt to add $2 billion to border security spending is expected next week, when the Senate is due to debate legislation providing funding for the war in Iraq and relief from last fall’s hurricanes.

Some critics of the bill have argued that it makes little sense to pass legislation affecting the current population of illegal immigrants as long as the border remains porous.

Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff told reporters this week he intends to increase enforcement efforts at places of employment.

“We are going to move beyond the current level of activity to a higher level in each month and year to come,” he said, pledging to “come down as hard as possible” on violators.

Federal agents on Wednesday arrested seven current and former managers of IFCO Systems, a manufacturer of crates and pallets, on criminal charges, and more than 1,100 people were arrested on administrative immigration charges at more than 40 IFCO sites in the United States.

Rumors fly about possible Reno immigration raids


Rumors spread around Northern Nevada Friday about possible immigration raids targeting Reno businesses and workers.

News 4, the Reno Gazette-Journal and a Reno Spanish-language TV station received several phone calls and e-mails about immigration enforcement agents rounding up suspected undocumented workers at a number of Reno-area businesses.

A federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency representative told News 4 no such operations had taken place in Reno. Other attempts to confirm the reports of immigration raids did not substantiate any of the rumors.

The rumors may have been spawned from real immigration raids that took place days earlier in many major cities.

IRS, Social Security Administration could slow illegal immigration


WASHINGTON - Two federal agencies are refusing to turn over a mountain of evidence that investigators could use to indict the nation's burgeoning workforce of illegal immigrants and the firms that employ them.

Last week, immigration cops trumpeted the arrests of nearly 1,200 illegal workers in a massive sting on a single company, but they admit that they relied on old-fashioned confidential informants and an unsolicited tip to get their investigation going.

It didn't have to be that hard.

The IRS and the Social Security Administration routinely collect strong evidence of potential workplace crimes, including names and addresses of millions of people who are using bogus Social Security numbers, their wage records and the identities of the bosses who knowingly hire them.

But they keep those facts secret.

"If the government bothered to look, it could find abundant evidence of illegal aliens gaming our system and the unscrupulous employers who are aiding and abetting them," said Rep. J.D. Hayworth, R-Ariz.

The two agencies don't analyze their data to root out likely immigration fraud - and they won't share their millions of records so that law enforcement agencies can do that, either.

Privacy laws, they say, prohibit them from sharing their files with anyone, except in rare criminal investigations.

But the agencies don't even use the power they have.

The IRS doesn't fine even the most egregious employers who repeatedly submit inaccurate data about their workers. Social Security does virtually nothing to alert citizens whose Social Security numbers are being used by others.

Evidence abounds within their files, according to an analysis by Knight Ridder Newspapers and The Charlotte Observer.

One internal study found that a restaurant company had submitted 4,100 duplicate Social Security numbers for workers. Other firms submit inaccurate names or numbers reports for nearly all of their employees. One child's Social Security number was used 742 times by workers in 42 states.

"That's the kind of evidence we want," says Paul Charlton, the U.S. attorney in Arizona. He regularly prosecutes unauthorized workers, but says it's hard to prove employers are involved in the crime.

"Anything that suggests they had knowledge . . . is a good starting point. If you see the same Social Security number a thousand times, it's kind of hard for them to argue they didn't know."

The potential crimes are so obvious that the failure to provide such information to investigators raises questions about Washington's determination to end the widespread hiring of illegal immigrants at cut-rate pay.

For years, the illicit workforce has ballooned.

An estimated 7 million unauthorized workers are gainfully employed in the United States. They're picking crops, building homes and tending yards in a shadow economy at work every day. In some cases, they work for the government on public projects that pay them with taxpayer money. They've built roads in North Carolina, military housing in California and even helped reconstruct the Pentagon after the Sept. 11 attacks, until law enforcement got word.

They also work at airports, seaports, nuclear plants and other sites vulnerable to U.S. security.

Those are the sites where immigration officials have focused their attention. But on Thursday, they announced a new push toward busting bosses who hire unauthorized workers.

Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff has asked Congress for access to the secret earnings files, a tool he says would help "get control of this illegal workforce."

In last week's bust at IFCO Systems North America Inc., a Houston-based maker of wooden pallets, more than half the workers were using invalid or stolen Social Security numbers.

"We need to be able to ... spot that kind of widespread abuse and not really just have to wait for tips," Chertoff said.

The IRS wants to protect the privacy of its records because disclosing them might cause companies and employees to stop reporting income and paying taxes - and go underground where exploitation is more certain.

"At least now," IRS commissioner Mark Everson told Congress in February, "we are collecting some taxes in these areas, and we are working to collect even more."

The records at issue are the earnings reports, sent by employers along with money withheld for taxes and Social Security.

They contain workers' names and Social Security numbers, and when they don't match Social Security records, the information is set aside in what's called the Earnings Suspense File.

Created in 1937, the file contains about 255 million unmatched wage reports representing $520 billion paid to workers but not credited to their Social Security earnings records.

Typos and name changes can cause wage reports not to match Social Security records. But increasingly, officials cite unauthorized workers using bogus Social Security numbers as a driving force behind the mismatch files.

"

The incorrect worker files mushroomed during the 1990s, as migrants poured into the United States. Almost half of the inaccurate reports come from such industries as agriculture, construction and restaurants, which rely on unauthorized labor.

"We believe the chief cause of (unmatched) wage items . . . is unauthorized work by non-citizens," Social Security's Inspector General Patrick O'Carroll told Congress in February.

The IRS also receives the mismatch information. It tries to match workers involved to its records, then probes to see whether the workers are paying taxes.

Particularly disturbing is that possibly millions of the Social Security numbers belong to other people.

In Utah, after Social Security provided data for one criminal probe, investigators discovered that Social Security numbers of 2,000 children were being used by other people.

"What do you think we'd find if we had the ability to analyze all of their information?" said Kirk Torgensen, Utah's chief deputy attorney general. "It would be invaluable. How short-sighted is it that the government doesn't follow this trail?"

Getting a job is easy for illegal immigrants.

One Honduran man, who crossed the U.S. border in Texas and settled in Charlotte, N.C., paid $50 for a Social Security card, but the construction company that hired him never asked to see it.

He's grateful. The job has allowed him to buy a home, a computer for his two boys and an aquarium filled with goldfish for the living room.

He's worked for the company for four years and now earns in a day what he made in a week back in Central America.

"I'm happy here," said the man, 37, who asked not to be named for fear he'd get fired and deported. "Over there, we don't have anything. You can't even afford to go to McDonald's."

Many of his fellow workers are illegal, he said. He thinks the company knows.

To work lawfully in the United States, individuals must have valid Social Security numbers or authorization from the Department of Homeland Security.

But the law doesn't require companies to verify that workers give them names and numbers that match Social Security records.

So most companies don't check.

That loophole, created by Congress in 1986, makes it hard to prove whether employers know they're hiring illegal workers.

Internal federal studies suggest that errors are so frequent that some companies must be aware of the illegal status of their employees.

Auditors found:

_About 8,900 of the nation's 6 million employers accounted for 30 percent of inaccurate reports.

_Ten states account for 48 percent of the U.S. workforce, but have 72 percent of the unmatched earnings reports.

_Some companies repeatedly have reporting problems, including 40 that made the worst 100 list repeatedly over a span of eight years. One company submitted 33,000 errant earnings reports in a single year.

Some of the country's most successful prosecutions have come with help from Social Security, which will open specific files once a criminal investigation is under way.

The records played an important role in last week's nationwide sting at IFCO, but investigators didn't learn about the company's immigrant workforce until a year after Social Security began sending notices asking the company and employees about the errors.

"The only reason we got onto this case was because of a lucky tip," said Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokesman Dean Boyd. "We could have launched this case a year earlier. It sure would make our jobs easier and save the taxpayers a lot of money if we had access to their information."

Most immigrants simply use Social Security numbers to get work, experts say.

They make up numbers, buy them on forged cards, or steal them.

But their demand has fueled a massive industry of suppliers who make fraudulent documents or steal real ones.

Federal officials downplay the risks that people face when others use their numbers for work. Safeguards are in place to protect retirement and disability benefits, they say.

Lenders, too, say most won't lend money if an applicant's Social Security number doesn't match the name on record.

But sometimes those safeguards fail.

Prosecutors and consumer groups say they see plenty of fraud committed with stolen Social Security numbers.

In Utah, prosecutors charged dozens of immigrants who got lured into a fraud ring to buy homes. The immigrants managed to obtain 87 home loans using Social Security numbers they'd obtained.

"The whole world revolves around the Social Security number. You need it to get employment, a driver's license, credit. . . . The more demand there is for stolen numbers, the odds are they're going to hit your number," said Torgensen, Utah's deputy attorney general.

Jay Foley warned that obtaining someone's number can also be the first step toward total identity theft. He started the Identity Theft Resource Center in San Diego after his wife became a victim.

"Someone can open credit in your name. You can be hounded by collection agencies," he said. "I've seen people lose their homes and their marriages over this.

Hispanic leaders split
over boycott tactics
Mexican government calls meeting with Latinos,
expected to urge U.S. leaders to reconsider May 1


Latino organizers of a May 1 economic boycott in the U.S. remain confident participation will be high, but factionalism has developed over planned tactics and, now, the government of Mexico is interjecting itself in what some see as an attempt to derail the protest altogether.

The boycott, announced in the wake of congressional debate on immigration reform that included making presence in the U.S. illegally a felony, was originally planned as a day on which Latinos and immigrants would refrain from spending. It garnered support from many labor and church leaders in the border states.

According to Hispanic Business magazine, Latino consumers in the U.S. account for over $820 billion in annual purchases – a number that is expected to reach $1 trillion by 2010.

"Not spending any money at all would show the economic impact of Latino purchasing power," United Farm Workers co-founder Dolores Huerta told the San Diego Union-Tribune.

But those wishing to send a stronger message to Congress and the public are also advocating workers stay home and students skip school on May 1, and that proposal is dividing boycott organizers.

"There would be a backlash against all of the positive energy that was created," said Linda Arreola of the Office for Social Ministry of the Roman Catholic Diocese of San Diego. "The message would be one that immigrants really don't want to be part of America, and that what they are really doing is hurting the U.S., and that would be hurting the movement."

Proponents of the work boycott, like Nativo Lopez, president of the Mexican American Political Association, counter that it's also important to focus on the value of immigrant employees.

"Why this tactic? All working people create value when they are participating in the production process," Lopez said. "That value is used by owners of industry to expand their business, reinvest and pocket the money for personal wealth. We are focusing on moving the power equation into the hands of workers who produce value."

While some Hispanic-owned businesses say they will close in support of their workers, they acknowledge it will be costly to do so.

"We're supporting them, but it makes it harder for us," said Hector Luevano, a native of Mazatlan and owner of a downtown San Diego coffeehouse and deli. "If we close, people will just go somewhere else. But if we stay open, and people ask why they have to wait, maybe when we explain it to them, it will be a better way to get a message across."

Labor unions with contracts that bar members from engaging in strikes and boycotts unrelated to a collective labor action are opposed to the work boycott and have told their members they cannot condone participation by members "in any action that violates our contracts."

"We think there are other ways to get the point across other than directing it at the economy of the nation and of families," said Ben Monterroso, executive director of SEUI Local 2028 in San Diego. "Most of the people we are talking about here ... are living paycheck to paycheck."

George Whalin, president of Retail Management Consultants in San Marcos, says participation in a full boycott is hard to predict, as is the possible economic impact.

"It's a little difficult to get a handle on how meaningful it will be," he said. "But if it gets big, it could have an impact on retail, gasoline, all kinds of things" due to a lack of staffing.

It is that potential for a negative impact on the U.S. economy that appears to be behind an unusual meeting called for Monday by Mexico's Foreign Relations Ministry. Government officials have invited U.S. Latino leaders to Mexico City to discuss the May 1 boycott. It is expected officials will ask that the economic action be reconsidered.

"We're in favor of a more moderate tone," one Mexican official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told the Dallas Morning News.

The meeting, called at the request of U.S. Latino leaders who sit on a Mexican government advisory council, is aimed to give more information "about the current debate about immigration in the U.S. Congress." Mexican officials are reportedly worried the boycott could undermine their efforts on behalf of immigrants in the U.S.

"We want America to notice us, to notice our economic and consumer power, to take us into account for that one day," said Nancy Guerrero of Dallas, who plans to go to Mexico City. "We pay on time and we pay in cash. We're great consumers. Don't take us for granted."

But Guerrero - like many Mexican immigrants - questions the Mexican government's intentions.

"The Mexican government shouldn't be involved in any of this," Guerrero said. "They shouldn't try to tell us what to do. We have to defend our rights on our own."

Mexican immigrants in the U.S. repatriate $20 billion annually to Mexico, a source of foreign dollars nearly as large as what the nation receives from petroleum sales. With that much economic clout over Mexico's economy, it's unclear how much influence the government can wield with immigrants in the U.S.

Jean Towell, the Dallas-based president of Citizens for Immigration Reform, a group that supports tougher immigration laws, isn't waiting for the planned boycott to fizzle over internal disputes over tactics or Mexico City tossing a wet blanket on the protests.

"We're telling our members if you have a big-ticket item that you want to purchase, wait till May 1 to shop," she said. "We're saying to our group, go out and shop and show that we can carry the economy without illegal immigrants."

Hatch aide bombarded with anti-amnesty calls

L.A. talk-show hosts urged listeners to express their views

      WASHINGTON — Hosts of a Los Angeles radio talk show listed a link to Sen. Orrin Hatch's press secretary's phone number on their Web site for their listeners to call to express views on the pending immigration bill now under consideration in the Senate.
      Hatch's spokesman Peter Carr is used to fielding a lot of phone calls in one day from reporters looking for information about the senator or Utah, but so far he has received at least 70 calls from California residents wanting to make sure the senator does not support any bill that would allow amnesty for illegal residents.
      Carr said the calls started last weekend and he came in the office on Monday to a number of voice mails — somewhat uncommon when the Senate is on recess, but even more uncommon because none of them were from reporters or anyone related to the media. He said everyone has been cordial but he had to resort to e-mail and using his cell phone to attend to his other responsibilities and avoid long conversations with people. He reminded the callers that Hatch does not support amnesty and has voted against it.

Talk show hosts John Kobylt and Ken Chiampou of the "The John and Ken Show," which airs on KFI AM 640 out of Los Angeles, listed the direct phone numbers of all the Senate Judiciary Committee members' press secretaries with the instruction "Grab a snack and beverage, find a comfortable chair and start calling everyone on this list."
      "Call them during the Easter break and tell them NO AMNESTY!," said the show Web site www.johnandkenshow.com.
      Show producer Ray Lopez said they purposely listed the press secretaries hoping to try a new avenue of getting to the lawmakers' offices. He said often the main numbers "get you nowhere" and that regular staff members do not have time to listen to such phone calls.
      He said they knew it was "not the cool thing to do" but that people in Southern California pay a big price for illegal immigrants and they want to be sure their voices are heard.
      The station gets classified as conservative, but Lopez said the show is more moderate. It has about 1 million listeners during its afternoon time slot from 3 to 7 p.m.

Latino stars record U.S. anthem in Spanish
Adaptation of ‘Star-Spangled Banner’ a show of support for migrants

NEW YORK - Mexican pop diva Gloria Trevi, Puerto Rican reggaeton Ivy Queen and Tito El Bambino and other Latino artists are recording a Spanish-language version of the U.S. national anthem in a show of support for migrants in the United States.

The Latino-oriented record label Urban Box Office (UBO) said Saturday it plans to release the new version of “The Star-Spangled Banner” to coincide with the U.S. Senate’s debate on immigration legislation next week.

Congressional debate over immigration bills proposing everything from toughened border security to the legalization of undocumented migrants in America have triggered huge demonstrations across the United States in recent weeks.

“We chose to re-record ’The Star-Spangled Banner’ to show our solidarity with the undocumented immigrants and their quest for basic civil rights,” UBO President Adam Kidron said in a news release.

The recording, dubbed “Nuestro Himno” or “Our Anthem,” is set to “rhythmic Latin musical arrangement” but respects the song’s traditional structure, UBO said. The song will be primarily in Spanish with a few words sung in English.

The song is on the album “Somos Americanos,” which will be sold for $10, with a portion going to Washington-based National Capital Immigration Coalition, UBO said.

Others participating in the Spanish version of “The Star-Spangled Banner” include Voz a Voz, Frank Reyes and Kalimba. UBO said it had also approached other artists, including Daddy Yankee and Don Omar, about taking part in the project.

26 area arrests in nationwide immigration raid

A nationwide raid by immigration and customs agents on Monday led to the arrest of seven managers and 1,187 illegal alien employees of IFCO Systems of North America in 26 states, including 26 Mexican nationals who were arrested in Chicago, according to a release from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

IFCO, a pallet services company headquartered in Houston, Texas, has plants nationwide and allegedly houses and uses illegal alien employees, according to the release. Criminal complaints filed in New York led to criminal charges and the arrest of seven managers and two employees at the New York, Texas, Massachusetts and Ohio plants for conspiring to transport, harbor, and encourage and induce illegal aliens to reside in the United States for commercial advantage and private financial gain, the release said.

In addition to the arrests, ICE agents conducted consent searches or executed criminal warrants at 40 IFCO plants in 26 states and apprehended about 1,187 illegals, the release said. Of those, 26 -- 24 males and two females -- were arrested at the IFO plant at 2000 W. 32nd St. in Chicago, the release said. They are currently being processed and placed into removal proceedings.

According to a federal affidavit filed in the Northern District of New York, IFCO officials transport illegals to and from work, pay rent for their housing and deduct money from their monthly checks for these expenses, the release said. Former employees also said it was common practice to hire workers without Social Security cards or any valid identification, the affidavit states.

The affidavit also states that of about 5,800 workers on IFCO payrolls in 2005, more than 50 percent had Social Security numbers that either did not match their name, were invalid or belonged to children or deceased persons.

Black Activists Join To March With Minutemen

Several black activists plan to join members of the Minutemen Project to protest illegal immigration, which organizer Ted Hayes touted as the “biggest threat to blacks in America since slavery.�

The protest, organized by Hayes’ Crispus Attucks Brigade and the American Black Citizens Opposed to Illegal Immigration Invasion, is scheduled to start at 1 p.m.

Hayes, a homeless activist, alleged that most homeless people in Los Angeles are black and illegal immigration compounds the problem since blacks refuse to accept the “slave wages� that many illegal immigrants accept.

Many pro-immigration rallies were held in recent weeks; most of which, called for amnesty to the nation’s estimated 12 million illegal immigrants. Many Southland public officials, including Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, supported the protesters.

"While all Americans are suffering from this invasion, we blacks are suffering the most," Hayes said. "We feel like the leaders promoting this issue are being insensitive. This country wasn't built on the backs of immigrants like (Villaraigosa) says. It was built on the back of West African slaves."

Immigrant activist Nativo Lopez believes Hayes is out of step with most black leaders and that both blacks and Hispanics face the same problems.

"Unfortunately, (Hayes) thinks that way," Lopez said. "He has a right to express his opinion, but I don't agree with him. Many and most African American leaders think otherwise and we're appreciative of their support. I'm not interested in Latinos being pitted against African Americans," he said. "We are all in the same boat. We will pull ourselves up together."

The Minutemen Project formed by Jim Gilchrist, patrols the Mexican border. He may attend the protest along with other Minutemen Project members. Hayes said that Minutemen Project members have been unfairly portrayed as racist.

"I've been down to the border with them. They're not racist," Hayes said. "They don't care what color you are."

Bush says massive deportation is not realistic

President Bush, rebutting lawmakers advocating a law-and-order approach to immigration, said Monday that those who are calling for massive deportation of the estimated 11 million foreigners living illegally in the United States are not being realistic.

"Massive deportation of the people here is not going to work," Bush said as a Congress divided over immigration returned from a two-week recess. "It's just not going to work."

Bush spoke in support of a stalled Senate bill that includes provisions that would allow for eventual citizenship to some of the illegal immigrants already here. Some conservatives say that would amount to amnesty.

"This is one of the really important questions Congress is going to have to deal with," Bush said. The president said he thought the Senate "had an interesting approach by saying that if you'd been here for five years or less, you're treated one way, and five years or more, you're treated another."

Standing in the center of a theater-in-the-round setting with an audience full of business people, Bush spoke sympathetically about the plight of foreigners who risk their lives to sneak into the United States to earn a decent wage. He said the U.S. needs a temporary guest worker program to stop people from paying to be smuggled in the back of a truck.

"I know this is an emotional debate," Bush told the Orange County Business Council. "But one thing we can't lose site of is that we are talking about human beings, decent human beings."

Lawmakers, with an eye on Election Day in just over six months, remain far apart on whether to crack down on illegal immigrants or embrace them as vital contributors to the U.S. economy.

Bush said it's important to enforce border laws that are on the books and boasted that 6 million immigrants have been captured and turned back since he took office.

"You can be a nation of law and be a compassionate nation at the same time," he said to applause.

The White House's immediate goal is to get legislation approved by the Senate and into a conference committee. The president's aides hope a compromise can be reached with House members who passed a tougher bill that would impose criminal penalties on those who try to sneak into this country and would build fencing along the U.S.-Mexico border.

Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., intends to seek passage of immigration legislation by Memorial Day by reviving the Senate bill that stalled earlier this month due to internal disputes in both parties as well as political maneuvering.

In a gesture to conservative critics of the measure, Republican leadership aides said last week that Frist also will seek roughly $2 billion in immediate additional spending for border protection.

After his immigration speech, Bush was ending a four-day stay in California that also featured speeches on U.S. competitiveness and his energy plan, meetings with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and former President Ford and plenty of time on his bike.

Bush's massive entourage took an overnight detour to Napa Valley just so he could bike through the picturesque wine country Saturday, and he rode Sunday morning to a peak overlooking Palm Springs.

He planned to stop in Las Vegas on his way home Monday to raise money for Republican Rep. Jon Porter at the Venetian Resort Hotel Casino.

Raided company says hirers duped by fake ID papers
IFCO Systems official says firm is investigating allegations

A Houston-based pallet recycler raided by federal authorities seeking illegal workers denied charges that it built record profits on a work force of undocumented immigrants.

"We believed we had proper documentation. Unfortunately, now it appears some of those documents were fraudulent," said Michael Hachtman, vice president for IFCO Systems North America Inc. in Houston.

On Wednesday, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers detained 1,187 employees at 40 IFCO operations in 26 states. Agents also arrested seven former and current IFCO managers and supervisors.

In Houston, officers arrested 67 workers at two plants in northeast and northwest Houston.

Officials released 53 of those employees, who must stay in touch with ICE. The remaining 14 are in custody.

Hachtman said IFCO's employment policy is designed to comply with state and federal regulations.

He also said IFCO required two forms of ID from the workers it hired.

But he was unable to explain how a quarter of its work force was detained for violating immigration laws if federal employment laws were strictly enforced.

Hachtman said midlevel managers work autonomously and have the discretion to make hiring decisions based on the information provided them by prospective employees.

He said workers are hired based on the documents provided.

Luisa Deason, ICE spokeswoman in Houston, said most employers must maintain I-9 forms that verify the employment eligibility of employees hired after Nov. 6, 1986.

In the course of the yearlong ICE investigation, she said IFCO was notified of irregularities pertaining to the eligibility of its work force and told to correct the problems.

Wednesday's raids were in part based on evidence found in the company's I-9 files.

Hachtman said IFCO is investigating the allegations and will implement any changes needed to ensure people are not hired using false or altered documents.

"We were shocked and disturbed by the allegations, and they're truly contrary to what IFCO stands for," Hachtman said.

Until the investigation is completed, he said IFCO managers arrested Wednesday will remain on temporary leave.

"We are committed to vigorously search for what happened and, if need be, change employment procedures to make sure this doesn't happen again," he said.

Hachtman said he has been in contact with some companies and that he knows of no one pulling out because of the raids.

However, the loss of so many workers has had an effect.

"It clearly has an impact on our operation," he said.

He said IFCO is trying to determine how many employees will be allowed to return to work. He said temporary workers will be hired to fill the gap.

Entry-level employees are hired at or near minimum wage, he said, but often earn much more based on production. He declined to detail how the company determines the piece rate for pallet assemblers, but he did say that a single worker can go through 400 to 600 pallets daily.

 Data on illegal immigrants kept secret
2 agencies cite privacy in denying info to prosecutors



Two federal agencies are refusing to turn over a mountain of evidence that investigators could use to indict the nation's burgeoning work force of illegal immigrants and the firms that employ them.
The Internal Revenue Service and the Social Security Administration routinely collect strong evidence of potential workplace crimes, including names and addresses of millions of people who are using bogus Social Security numbers, their wage records, and the identities of the bosses who knowingly hire them.
But they keep those facts secret.
The two agencies don't analyze their data to root out likely immigration fraud, and they won't share their millions of records so that law enforcement agencies can do that, either.
Privacy laws, they say, prohibit them from sharing their files with anyone, except in rare criminal investigations.
But the agencies don't even use the power they have.
The IRS doesn't fine even the most egregious employers who repeatedly submit inaccurate data about their workers. Social Security does virtually nothing to alert citizens whose Social Security numbers are being used by others.
Evidence abounds within their files, according to an analysis by Knight Ridder Newspapers and the Charlotte (N.C.) Observer.
One internal study found that a restaurant company had submitted 4,100 duplicate Social Security numbers for workers. Other firms submit inaccurate names or numbers reports for nearly all of their employees. One child's Social Security number was used 742 times by workers in 42 states.
"That's the kind of evidence we want," said Paul Charlton, the U.S. attorney in Arizona. He regularly prosecutes unauthorized workers, but says it's hard to prove employers are involved in the crime.
"Anything that suggests they had knowledge . . . is a good starting point. If you see the same Social Security number a thousand times, it's kind of hard for them to argue they didn't know."
On Thursday, immigration officials announced a new push toward busting bosses who hire unauthorized workers.
Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff has asked Congress for access to the secret earnings files, a tool he says would help "get control of this illegal workforce."
The records at issue are the earnings reports, sent by employers along with money withheld for taxes and Social Security.
They contain workers' names and Social Security numbers, and when they don't match Social Security records, the information is set aside in what's called the Earnings Suspense File.
Typos and name changes can cause wage reports not to match Social Security records. But increasingly, officials cite unauthorized workers using bogus Social Security numbers as a driving force behind the mismatched files.
The incorrect worker files mushroomed during the 1990s, as migrants poured into the United States. Almost half of the inaccurate reports come from such industries as agriculture, construction and restaurants, which rely on unauthorized labor.
The IRS also receives the mismatch information. It tries to match workers involved to its records, then probes to see whether the workers are paying taxes.
To work lawfully in the United States, individuals must have valid Social Security numbers or authorization from the Department of Homeland Security.
But the law doesn't require companies to verify that workers give them names and numbers that match Social Security records.

National Minuteman leader coming to Bellingham


Chris Simcox, the outspoken leader of the national Minuteman Civil Defense Corps, will come to Bellingham Thursday to defend his volunteer border watchers at a state Human Rights Commission meeting.
Simcox, 45, said testifying at the meeting would help balance the “fear and loathing” created by the ACLU and Minuteman opponents.

“I thought I’d stop by and hear what kind of inaccurate lies and rhetoric there’d be,” Simcox said in a telephone interview Tuesday morning from Phoenix, Ariz. “Too much is going on when they are able to create an atmosphere of hate with the inaccurate assumptions of our operations.”

Simcox already had planned a trip to the area to check in with the Washington Minuteman Detachment, which has conducted a month-long watch of Whatcom County’s border with Canada.

Citizen-built border fence gains steam
Activists solicit help from ranchers, donors, state lawmakers

Taking matters into their own hands, some activists are working to build a fence along the nearly 2,000-mile U.S. southern border – with or without government participation.

Using the slogan "American Citizens Securing the Borders Themselves," The Border Fence Project hopes to raise enough money to build a fence along 90 percent of the U.S.-Mexico border that currently has no physical barrier.

According to the effort's website, the "fencing solution" will include the use of near-wholesale raw materials and use volunteer labor to build the structure.

Leaders from both parties in Washington have been reluctant to advocate a fence along the entire border, with some saying a "virtual fence" using high-tech surveillance equipment and drones can do the job of stemming illegal immigration.

States the Border Fence Project website: "Because Washington officials have consistently shown apprehension and outright consternation of the idea of a complete fence, it is unlikely they will ever cooperate, assuming the public continues to vote for special-interest candidates. Furthermore, most estimates show that because of the inefficiency of government labor and high markup on raw materials, the cost is likely to run $9 billion, only 23 percent of the Department of Homeland Security annual budget, but enough to receive grief from the open-borders lobby.

"We know we the civilian volunteers, in cooperation with Minuteman-like groups already on the border, can do the job for 1/400 of that cost!"

The organization, led by Jim Wood of Running Springs, Calif., believes an effective fence can be built for between $1.50 and $4 a foot. It would consist of a barbed-wire fence guarded by "solar motion lights with sirens, other motion sensors, electronic sensors that determine if the wire has been cut and a television-camera-unit for up to every quarter-mile of fencing depending on landscape," the site states.

Last week, Chris Simcox, leader of the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps, a civilian border patrol group, said if the government was not going to build a fence, volunteers would do so.

''We're going to show the federal government how easy it is to build these security fences, how inexpensively they can be built when built by private people and free enterprise,'' Simcox told the Associated Press.

Meanwhile, an Arizona state lawmaker is proposing legislation to allow ranchers who lease state land along the border to build fencing on government property.

State Rep. Russell Pearce told KVOA-TV the bill is still being drafted.

"I'm interested in helping to do that," Pearce said. "We don't have authority over federal land but we do over state land."

Simcox, who hopes to begin the fence project May 25, says he is supportive of the proposed legislation.

Minuteman spokeswoman Connie Hair called the response to the fence proposal unbelievable – "people wanting to donate, to help build a fence, people wanting a fence on their land," according to AP.

Said Simcox on the Minuteman website: "We have chosen a fence design that is based on the Israeli fences in Gaza and on the West Bank that have cut terrorist attacks there by 95 percent or more. In order to be effective, a fence should not be easy to compromise by climbing over it with a ladder, cutting through it with wire cutters, ramming it with a vehicle, or tunneling under it undetected."

The design includes a double fence with a six-foot trench on both sides and surveillance cameras. Simcox says the fence would cost no more than $150 a foot.

Border-area ranchers have long been active in opposing illegal immigration, since the entrants often vandalize their property and commit other crimes as they make their way north.

Meanwhile, WeNeedAFence.com, a leading organization in the effort to erect a fence, is hailing recent comments by Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., supporting a physical barrier on the border.

"A physical structure is obviously important. A wall in certain areas would be appropriate," Clinton is quoted by the New York Daily News as saying.

"We commend Senator Clinton for supporting a secure physical barrier along our southern border," said WeNeedAFence.com President Colin Hanna. "We welcome the opportunity to work with senators on both sides of the aisle to build consensus in favor of a state-of-the-art border fence."

______________________

Note: For some reason this wall reminds me of the Berlin Wall.

Bush, Congress report progress on immigration reform bill


Bush, Congress report progress on immigration reform bill
Apr 25 6:57 PM US/Eastern
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President George W. Bush hailed progress made with members of the US Senate toward an overhaul of America's immigration laws, and said there were broad areas of agreement on a compromise bill.

"There is a common desire to have a bill that enforces the border, a bill that has interior enforcement," he said.

 "In other words, a bill that will hold people to account for hiring somebody who is here illegally -- but a bill that also recognizes we must have a temporary worker program," said Bush.

The president said that the legislation envisioned by both sides "does not grant automatic amnesty to people, but ... says, somebody who is working here on a legal basis has the right to get in line to become a citizen."

He added: "I strongly believe that we have a chance to get an immigration bill that is comprehensive in nature to my desk before the end of this year."

US Senate leaders have said a vote on immigration reform legislation is likely by the end of May.

Enormous differences remain however, with immigration legislation passed in the House of Representatives in December that would criminalize illegal residents and construct a fence along a vast section of the southern US border.

Bush violating duties on immigration?
McClellan defends boss on deporting illegals, cites 'reality of the situation'


Saying the "reality of the situation" is that millions of illegal aliens are here to stay, presidential press secretary Scott McClellan today defended President Bush's belief that deporting "undocumented people" is infeasible.

WND asked McClellan at the White House press briefing: "The president is the chief executive charged with enforcing the laws of the United States. And the law says an illegal entrant is to be deported. Yet yesterday he said mass deportation wouldn't work. And my question: By articulating that policy, isn't the president violating his executive duties?"

Responded the spokesman: "Les, the president has made very clear that we have a responsibility to enforce our laws. We are also a nation of immigrants, and we can be both. We can enforce our laws … and we can be a nation of immigrants."

McClellan then outlined steps that Bush has taken to improve enforcement, but added, "We also need to look at the reality of the situation."

Continued McClellan: "We have – I think it's an estimated 12 million undocumented people in this country. There is an economic need that some of those people are filling, jobs that Americans are not wanting to do. And the president believes that if we're going to fix the immigration system, we need to do it in a comprehensive way. And that means including a temporary guest worker program, which will help relieve pressure off the border.

We will enforce our laws, and we will continue to take steps to strengthen our borders. But we also need to address this problem and fix our immigration system. And if we're going to do so, you've got to do it in a comprehensive way."

WND also asked McClellan about the nuclear threat posed by Iran, saying, "London's Daily Telegraph quotes Israeli Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz as saying, 'Of all the threats we face, Iran is the biggest. Since Hitler, we have not faced such a threat.' And my question: Does the Bush administration disagree with this statement and with a probable Israeli nuclear attack to prevent an Iranian nuclear bombing of Tel Aviv?"

Said McClellan: "Well, Les, we believe it is a serious threat, and that's why we're working with international community to resolve this in a diplomatic way and keep the pressure on the regime in Iran to change its behavior and to come into compliance with its international obligations. This is a regime that continues to isolate itself and its people from the rest of the international community."

McCain-Kennedy: American 'coyotes'


Living in Phoenix, Ariz., makes me acutely aware of the ongoing impact illegal immigration has on our state and country. On a daily basis the evening news is packed with drug busts, car chases or Border Patrol dealing with lawbreakers.

We have the underworld of the "coyotes" (pronounced kai-o-tay) to thank for this problem. And now two new coyotes have entered the business.

If Congress goes along with the "amnesty" bill currently masquerading as the McCain-Kennedy bill, the biggest coyotes will be McCain and Kennedy.

They propose to have all illegal immigrants currently living in the United States pay a fine. What's the difference between this and illegals paying the coyotes?

Illegals save up thousands of dollars and pay a coyote to pack them like sardines into pickup trucks (which have been stolen in the United States) to make the voyage across the desert. With talk of the amnesty soon to be offered in America, illegals are saving their money, walking across the desert on their own with every intention to pay the coyotes who can give them a "pathway" to citizenship – the new coyotes that is.

I can only gather that McCain and Kennedy are spitting mad over the money going to the coyotes instead of going into government coffers to be wasted by fellow Washington bureaucrats. So they are going to offer illegals the option of paying them instead. This is not only insane, but should show the true intentions of the McKennedys in D.C.

Local news has been reporting an increase of border jumpers as the promise of "legal" citizenship is awaiting them in the form of the McKennedy bill. The predictions that anything short of sealing the border, rounding up the criminals and sending them home would cause a rise in crime are starting to come to pass.

We can fight all we want over this issue, but last week's ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) raids on the IFCO companies yielded very productive results. Dozens of illegals were sent home, and American businessmen were arrested and soon will be punished for breaking the law. That is what should happen. I salute Michael Chertoff at Homeland Security as well as ICE and Border Patrol for enforcing the law. It will hinder and hopefully stop the lawbreaking that is having a powerful effect on Arizona and America.

Last weekend in Arizona, we had the largest meth bust in the history of the country. Some 70 pounds of pure meth were seized along with tons of cash. When the smoke settled, who were the criminals? You guessed it: illegal aliens. Yet the local news referred to them as "undocumented migrants." WHAT? That is right. The news wouldn't even refer to them as illegal immigrants. Of course, the undocumented migrants were just here trying to make a better life for their families. They are hard-working people willing to do the jobs Americans refuse to do.

What is more frightening about my sarcasm is the fact some bleeding hearts in D.C. really want to convince themselves that most of the illegals are hardworking, law-abiding folks. They are not. If they broke the law to get here, they will cut corners if given the chance in the future. Show me a crook who got away with a crime and then just turned himself in. They normally continue in their illegal activity until they are caught and then they change. Not because they were wrong, but because they were caught.

I suspect if the meth dealers were skinheads out of Montana, you would have seen the liberal press go on a feeding frenzy. Yet here in Arizona, this whole story received little more than a patronizing yawn. How many young American lives would that meth have destroyed? How many inner-city youth would have been shot over dealing it? How many millions of taxpayer dollars would have been spent mopping up the mess that 70 pounds of pure meth would have created? Where is the outrage from Pelosi, Kennedy, Schumer, Kerry, McCain, Reid and Specter – or are they all too busy grandstanding about $3-per-gallon gasoline to deal with an issue that is slowly bleeding us to death and now, apparently, killing our kids?

I think this issue is so simple to fix. Seal the border, arrest and fine businesses that hire illegals, slowly round up the criminals and send them home. After that basic enforcement of the law, we can discuss the best way to provide the low-cost labor Mexico offers. Until then, we can still allow honest and more than likely hardworking Mexicans looking for a better life here in America to come through the current "Green Card" program.

Do it legally, and 99 percent of America's citizens will welcome you. Until then, stay out of our stinking country, Ese. That is unless you want to pay the new coyotes. Do it by the book and you will never have to look over your shoulder or be in debt to anyone. Do it with the McCain-Kennedy coyote company and, believe me, they will never let you forget how much you truly owe them.

The victims of illegal immigration


President Bush accuses those of us who want to secure America's borders and fully enforce our immigration laws of lacking "compassion."

Huh. Well, I have yet to hear an ounce of compassion from President Bush for America's countless casualties of lax immigration enforcement. Where's the sympathy for innocent, law-abiding citizens who have lost their lives at the hands of illegal aliens and their open-borders enablers?

Nope, we haven't heard a word about the victims as the White House pours on its unadulterated pro-illegal alien rhetoric and "undocumented workers do the jobs Americans won't do" propaganda – all in support of a massive, ill-timed, bureaucratic nightmare-inducing amnesty plan that will inevitably increase illegal immigration.

Last week, a notorious illegal alien serial killer who traipsed freely across the U.S.-Mexican border during a 25-year, escalating crime spree popped up in the news again. The case of Angel Resendiz, a convicted death row murderer in President Bush's home state of Texas, is a timely reminder of the deadly costs of our continued homeland security chaos.

Time and again, illegal alien day laborer Resendiz broke the law getting into our country; broke more laws while in the country; and then broke the law repeatedly and brazenly after being released, deported and allowed to return. His most brutal acts included the slayings of 12 people, ranging in age from 16 to 81, which ended in 1999 when Resendiz surrendered to a Texas Ranger in El Paso. For the last seven years, Resendiz has been perched comfortably on Death Row – eating chocolate cream pies, watching Spanish-language television, whining about depression and selling locks of his hair on Internet auction sites.

His execution, scheduled for May 10, has been delayed pending yet another of his endless appeals claiming to be "insane."

As I recounted in my book "Invasion," Resendiz entered and exited our country at will. From the time he was 14, he racked up arrests and convictions ranging from trespassing, destruction of property, burglary, aggravated battery and grand theft auto to carrying a loaded firearm and false representation of U.S. citizenship. He had at least 25 encounters with U.S. law enforcement between August 1976 and August 1996, when he was arrested and released for trespassing in a Kentucky rail yard.

During that period, he was convicted at least nine times on several serious felony charges. He was deported to Mexico by the feds at least three times and was "voluntarily returned" to Mexico at least four times without formal proceedings. Throughout 1998, the Border Patrol continued its blind catch-and-release policy – apprehending Resendiz seven times and letting him go on his own recognizance despite his massive criminal record and three prior deportations. Shoddy fingerprint databases, immigration paperwork negligence and unpoliced borders led to:

    * The bludgeoning death of Florida teenager Jesse Howell and the rape and strangulation murder of his fiance, Wendy Von Huben.

    * The bludgeoning death of University of Kentucky student Christopher Maier and the rape and near-murder of his girlfriend, who survived the attack.

    * The murder of Leafie Mason, an elderly Texas woman whom Resendiz hammered to death with a fire iron.

    * The rape, stabbing and bludgeoning death of Baylor College of Medicine researcher Claudia Benton.

    * The sledgehammer bludgeonings of Texas pastor Norman Sirnic and his wife, Karen.

    * The bludgeoning death of Houston teacher Noemi Dominguez.

    * The murder of elderly Texas widow Josephine Konvicka, who was killed with a grubbing hoe.

    * The murders of George Morber, shot in the head, and Carolyn Frederick, clubbed to death.

The last four of Resendiz's victims were murdered after Resendiz had been released by federal immigration officials – even though there were already warrants outstanding for his arrest.

Resendiz made a bloody mockery of our homeland security chaos. Congress and the White House are now preparing to add grave insult to fatal injury by refusing to fix the persistent problems that facilitated Resendiz's crimes.

Campaigning for amnesty this week, President Bush mouthed the open-borders mantra against tough deportation policies and lectured immigration enforcement advocates about their lack of sensitivity.

"I can understand it's emotional," he said, but "we're talking about human beings, decent human beings that need to be treated with respect."

I don't think the victims of "undocumented worker" Angel Resendiz would agree.

Star-studded. Star-Spangled. In Spanish?

 
A plan to enlist Mexican pop diva Gloria Trevi, reggaeton star Tito El Bambino and other Latin musicians to record a Spanish-language pop version of "The Star Spangled Banner" is being touted by organizers as a way immigrants can show their devotion to their new country.

But like most every aspect of the immigration debate, the symbolism is in the ear of the beholder. The idea of the nation's anthem in a foreign tongue is beginning to elicit a chorus of dissonant voices.

 In coming days, producers plan to send the single to Spanish-language radio stations in Chicago and nationwide. The proceeds from "Nuestro Himno," or "Our Anthem," will benefit groups organizing massive marches nationwide in support of legalizing illegal immigrants.

By embracing a song that symbolizes American values, immigrants hope to reinforce the message that their desire is to be part of this country, regardless of legal status. In that vein, some organizers have urged participants in a next Monday's march in the Loop to bring only American flags and leave Mexican banners at home.

"In our countries, national anthems are a beautiful expression of who we are," said Juan Carlos Ruiz, general coordinator of the Washington-based National Capital Immigration Coalition. "Our immigrant communities want to be a part of this country. We want the American dream."

But conservative columnists and groups that oppose illegal immigration say the song is a symbolic false note. For them, the project symbolizes a frightening prospect: that Hispanic immigrants do not want to assimilate but want to remake America on their terms.

Executives with Urban Box Office, a New York-based record label and marketing company, came up with the idea for the recording earlier this month. The project snowballed, and about 20 artists now will record their parts in studios from Madrid to Mexico, CEO Adam Kidron said.

The song is a rough translation of the anthem, supplemented by an English-language chant by preteen rapper P-Star. She chants: "See this can't happen, not only about the Latins/Asians, blacks, and whites and all they do is adding/more and more let's not start a war/with all these hard workers/they can't help where they were born."

The single will be part of an album called "Somos Americanos," or "We Are Americans." The album likely won't be released until next month, but the backlash over the song has already started.

Syndicated columnist Michelle Malkin, in decrying the project, wrote: "Whose anthem, whose flag, whose country is it anyway?" Listeners of conservative radio shows and groups that oppose illegal immigration have seized on the issue, too, and let the studio know.

On the popular Free Republic conservative blog, one reader lamented: "Welcome to the United States of Mexico." Another added: "That makes me sick. Real Americans speak English." A reader of the Immigration Watchdog blog wondered: "'Our Anthem'? My freaking head is about to explode!"

"I've had more hate mail in the last 24 hours than I've experienced in my whole life," the recording company's Kidron said.

The back and forth over the anthem mirrors an ongoing subplot over flags that emerged in dozens of marches that have drawn millions nationwide. Protesters are urging Congress to pass a bill to legalize most of the nation's 11 million illegal immigrants in addition to backing away from workplace immigration raids.

From the start, organizers of a massive March 10 march in Chicago urged participants not to antagonize opponents by carrying the Mexican flag. The result was that the American flag dominated, with some marchers bringing posters of Martin Luther King Jr. and George Washington. Young children led the crowd at Federal Plaza in the Pledge of Allegiance--in English.

But as marches moved to the border states in late March, the tone changed. Protesters were more defiant. The crowds in Los Angeles and other cities featured a sea of Mexican flags.

U.S. Rep. Virgil Goode (R-Va.) fumed to the Richmond Times-Dispatch: "If you are here illegally, and you want to fly the Mexican flag, go to Mexico to fly the Mexican flag!" In Arizona, Apache Junction High School students burned the Mexican flag after classmates raised it above their school.

After the rebukes, a follow-up series of marches April 10 primarily featured American flags.

But critics of illegal immigration say the American flags are merely a distraction to the in-your-face rhetoric of illegal immigrants who insist that the U.S. is their land.

"It's one thing to wave a Mexican flag at a restaurant or at your house. It's another thing when you bring it into the public discourse," said Joseph Turner, executive director of Save Our State, a California nonprofit group that opposes illegal immigration. "When you come to our country, you'd better adopt our values, our culture, our customs and our language. Period."

Still, immigration experts and the marchers themselves say that, if the symbols appear muddled, it is likely because national loyalties are often a complicated notion.

Julie Santos, secretary of a Chicago group called United Latino Family, said her members are families in which some members are U.S. citizens and others are illegal immigrants threatened with deportation. In a mixture of fear and pride, families that normally carry the Mexican flag and the Virgin of Guadalupe at group events brandished American flags at the March rally, Santos said.

"I carried an American flag because I am proud of this country. But your descent is something that you can't take away from anyone, whether you're Polish, Irish or whatever," she said. "No one should be put down because they are carrying their home country's flag. We can express ourselves in any way. That's the wonderful part of being in America."

Maria de los Angeles Torres, director of Latin American and Latino studies at the University of Illinois at Chicago, said technology and proximity have allowed Mexican immigrants to retain their cultural identities more closely than many previous immigrant waves.

But Torres said Chicagoans have always retained a "hyphenated" cultural identity, no matter their background. Americans, she said, should look at the desire of marchers to work and participate politically as consistent with American values.

"I worry that people feel that they are so vulnerable that they can't express both identities," she said. "The conception that you have to leave behind your culture to become an American is a most un-American conception of political citizenship."

Seaboard pork plant to close for immigration rally

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Seaboard Corp. said it will close its Guymon, Oklahoma, pork plant on Monday to allow workers to attend rallies planned for that day in support of immigration reform, the company said.

The plant has a daily hog slaughter capacity of about 16,000 head, the company said.

On Tuesday, Cargill Inc. said its five beef plants and two hog plants will be closed on Monday for the rallies.

Poll: Dems leap ahead of GOP on illegals
Reversal comes as DNC emphasizes enforcement of laws


By emphasizing enforcement of the law, Democrats have leaped ahead of Republicans in the latest poll asking Americans which party they trust more on the issue of illegal immigration.

As the immigration debate rose to the top of the national agenda this year, the GOP was favored by 37 percent to 31 percent over Democrats, said pollster Rasmussen Reports.

But the newest survey shows round two going to the Democrats as Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean declares enforcement of the border his party's top priority.

Now 42 percent trust Democrats more on this issue while 35 percent trust the GOP.

Rasmussen comments: "While the short-term benefit may accrue to those who favor a tougher enforcement policy, the long-term implications of the issue are less clear. At the moment, neither political party enjoys unity within its own ranks on the issue. Politicians from both sides are struggling with the nuances of the issue."

Prior to the debate's emergence this year Americans were evenly divided on which party they trusted.

Democrats have gained ground primarily by solidifying their base, Rasmussen says, as 77 percent of Democrats now trust their party more on the issue than Republicans, up from 60 percent earlier.

Democrats also have made gains among unaffiliated Americans.

Republicans still trust their own party more on the issue by a 70 percent to 12 percent margin.

Although Democrats have gained ground, they still are behind among the 53 percent of Americans who say immigration will be a very significant factor in terms of how they vote in November.

Among this group, 43 percent trust Republicans more and 33 percent trust Democrats.

Rasmussen also found 57 percent of Americans still favor building a barrier along the Mexican border. Among those who consider immigration very important, 73 percent want a barrier.

The poll indicated only 26 percent of Americans have a favorable opinion of the protesters who engaged in massive rallies for illegal immigrants. Fifty-four percent have an unfavorable view.

In an earlier survey, Rasmussen found that in a hypothetical race for Congress, a plurality of Americans would vote for the candidate who favors more enforcement of immigration laws.

Another poll found two-thirds of Americans think it doesn't make sense to debate new immigration laws until we can first control our borders and enforce existing laws.

The same survey found 40 percent of Americans favor "forcibly" requiring all an estimated 11 million illegal immigrants to leave the U.S.

McClellan touts Bush's own fences
But says he's not familiar with citizen efforts to build border barrier


Presidential press secretary Scott McClellan today said he was unfamiliar with citizen efforts to build a fence along the U.S. southern border, saying instead steps President Bush has taken will help stem the flow of illegal aliens, including putting up barriers "in some of the urban areas."

WND asked McClellan about efforts to build a fence at 1/400 of what it would cost the federal government to erect.

"Would the president support such an effort if it costs the government nothing in labor or material, if it stemmed the massive flow of illegal immigrants daily crossing our southern border?" asked WND.

"I have not seen what they have said, but what we are doing – let me tell you what we are doing," responded McClellan. "We are deploying new technologies along the border to stop people from entering this country illegally. We are ending the catch and release program and moving to a catch and return program. The president has called on Congress to add more manpower -- that means more Border Patrol agents.

"We've already added a significant number since the president has been in office, to deploy new technology along the border, such as infrared cameras and motion sensors, and unmanned aerial vehicles, and also to work to strengthen the infrastructure along the border, as well, with some state-of-the art fencing in some of the urban areas where we have already put some state-of-the-art fencing in some of those urban areas. And there's some areas where we might need to put some additional fencing. The president has talked about that."

WND also noted that Tony Snow, the man tapped to replace McClellan as press secretary comes from the ranks of the New Media.

Said WND: "The fact that Tony Snow is now, as I understand it, a talk radio host, means that the president recognizes that talk radio is, along with the Internet, America's new major media thrust, replacing most newspapers and old liberal TV and magazines, doesn't it?"

"I think it's healthy to have a diversity of viewpoints from within the media," demurred McClellan.

I knew it was just a matter of time.

______________

Muslims to join pro-illegals protest in L.A.
Millions of activists expected to 'close' major cities May 1

Muslims in Los Angeles and elsewhere are being urged to join millions of Latino protesters in the streets May 1 to demonstrate in favor of leniency toward illegal aliens currently living in the United States unlawfully.

"In solidarity with immigration activists around the country, the Muslim Public Affairs Council as well as the Council on American-Islamic Relations - Los Angeles, the Islamic Shura Council of Southern California, the L.A. Latino Muslim Association, the Muslim American Society - Los Angeles, and the Muslim Students Association - West are calling on American Muslims to participate in a day of action on May 1, 2006," says a statement from the Muslim Public Affairs Council.

"Islam's message is one of social justice, economic fairness, and fair treatment in the workplace. The Quran urges the proper treatment and respect of workers."

Choosing May 1, the day Communists worldwide celebrate the worker, activists have vowed to "close" major American cities as millions of Latinos, both legal and illegal, mark what some organizers are calling "a day without an immigrant" and others refer to as the "Great American Boycott." They are urging supporters not to go to work, school or spend money on that day.

"It is to show the amount of work, the purchasing power, the contributions that illegal and undocumented workers make on a daily basis," Chris Banks, a volunteer for ANSWER, or Act Now to Stop War and End Racism, told the Desert Dispatch in California.

"RealIy, it is no different from the transit strike that took place in New York last December, and they shut the city down and it was to show the value of their work – the labor that they do," he said. "The labor they (illegal aliens) do for our collective well being is enormous."

The Muslim organization pushing participation is urging the faithful in Southern California to attend a march near downtown Los Angeles at 4 p.m. Monday.

"American Muslim organizations are calling for a comprehensive immigration reform that includes provisions for a pathway to lawful permanent residence for the undocumented currently in the United States, a temporary worker program that matches willing workers with willing employers, and a reduction in the current backlogs in family-based immigration to the United States," said the Muslim Public Affairs Council.

Failing to agree on an immigration reform bill earlier this month, members of Congress and President Bush continue to push various measures meant to deal with the flow of illegals into the country and those already here.

Jorge Rodriguez is a union official who helped organize earlier pro-illegals rallies.

"We want full amnesty, full legalization for anybody who is here (illegally)," Rodriguez told Reuters. "That is the message that is going to be played out across the country on May 1."

As WorldNetDaily reported, large protests held by pro-illegal-alien activists early this month actually had a negative effect on the demonstrators' cause, a poll found.

Star-Spangled Banner -- in Spanish -- drawing protest, rage

 MIAMI -- British music producer Adam Kidron says he just wanted to honor the millions of immigrants seeking a better life in the U.S. when he came up with the idea of a Spanish-language version of the national anthem.

The initial version of Nuestro Himno, or Our Anthem comes out Friday and features artists such as Wyclef Jean, hip-hop star Pitbull and Puerto Rican singers Carlos Ponce and Olga Tanon.

 Some Internet bloggers and others are infuriated by the thought of The Star-Spangled Banner sung in a language other than English, and the version of the song has already been the target of a fierce backlash.

``Would the French accept people singing the La Marseillaise in English as a sign of French patriotism? Of course not,'' said Mark Krikorian, head of the Washington-based Center for Immigration Studies, a think tank that supports tighter immigration controls.

``Nuestro Himno'' uses lyrics based closely on the English-language original, said Kidron, who heads the record label Urban Box Office.

Pro-immigration protests are planned around the country for Monday, and the record label is urging Hispanic radio stations nationwide to play the cut at 7 p.m. EDT Friday in a sign of solidarity.

A remix to be released in June will contain several lines in English that condemn U.S. immigration laws. Among them: ``These kids have no parents, cause all of these mean laws ... let's not start a war with all these hard workers, they can't help where they were born.''

Bryanna Bevens of Hanford, Calif., who writes for the immigration-focused Web magazine Vdare.com, said the remix particularly upset her.

``It's very whiny. If you want to say all those things, by all means, put them on your poster board, but don't put them on the national anthem,'' she said.

Kidron, a U.S. resident for 16 years, maintains the changes are fitting. After all, he notes, American immigrants borrowed the melody of the Star Spangled Banner from an English drinking song.

``There's no attempt to usurp anything. The intent is to communicate,'' Kidron said. ``I wanted to show my thanks to these people who buy my records and listen to the music we release and do the jobs I don't want to do.''

Kidron said the song also will be featured on the album ``Somos Americanos,'' which will sell for $10, with $1 going to the National Capital Immigration Coalition, a Washington group.

James Gardner, an associate director of the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History, said Americans have long enjoyed different interpretations of the Star Spangled Banner, including country or gospel arrangements.

``There are a number of renditions that people aren't happy with, but that's part of it _ that it means enough for people to try to sing,'' he said.

Pitbull, whose real name is Armando Perez, said this country was built by immigrants, and ``the meaning of the American dream is in that record: struggle, freedom, opportunity, everything they are trying to shut down on us.''

 Squaring up for a drugs war on streets of Laredo


On the far side of the Rio Grande, a Mexican drug runner raised his AK47 at US lawmen.

The man and five companions were goading the Americans, 100 yards across the border.

"Hey! We're ready to play now," screamed the gunman, who was probably trying to recover the marijuana abandoned on the American side after a chase earlier that day.

The threat didn't work. The Texan sheriff's deputy, Abel Hinojosa, stayed where he was, with the drug gang in his sights and his finger tightening on the trigger of his rifle.

Reliving the moment, he said quietly: "There was no doubt in my mind - if the guy had fired a round, I'd have shot him."

A fire fight across a border, even when provoked by drug runners, would spark an international incident. Yet the bloodshed on Mexico's northern border is now so serious that an international showdown could hardly make matters worse.

The Americans at the sharp end, the lawmen patrolling 2,000 miles of border, are profoundly anxious. With narcotics gangs controlling swathes of northern Mexico and the forces of the state in retreat, they are the next target and some have already been shot.

Sheriff Rick Flores, whose area covers a vast border region, said he would not be intimidated: 'They're testing us, pushing and pushing. The Border Patrol has started shooting back and we're going to do the same."

Drive-by shootings have begun on the American side, weaponry is being seized and safe houses uncovered. Sheriff's deputies who once wore only side arms, now shoulder machineguns and body armour.

According to Sheriff Flores the drug-runners are even better equipped.

Is it a war? "Oh yeah, it's a war. These people are sophisticated and they are organised. They wear body armour and helmets, just like our soldiers in Iraq. They have no respect for life and are not afraid of law enforcement on this side.

"Over in Iraq, you have Iraqi militias willing to give up their lives just to cause us harm - these people are the same way," he said.

Two gangs are reportedly battling for control of a critical route through which an estimated $14 billion (£8 billion) worth of drugs pass annually.

Interstate 35, the great highway which runs from Laredo to the Canadian border, is the main artery for South American drugs.

Whoever controls the Mexican side controls the last distribution point before drugs enter the American market.

Across the border lies Nuevo Laredo, described by many as the drug cartels' heart of darkness. The body count this year stands at 88. Officials predict it will hit 300 by the year's end, double last year's figure.

Killers walk free and half the local police have been fired for links to cartels while the other half are either too cowed to act or still in the pay of the gangs.

One police chief was murdered eight hours after taking the job.

Americans from the twin city of Laredo do not visit the narrow streets or the pretty plazas of the old town any more, even though many have relatives there.

Despite close ties of blood and affection there is only a vague sense of what is really happening on the far side of the Rio Grande.

The anxiety is being fed by an effective media blackout in Nuevo Laredo, following a machinegun attack on the newspaper office there.

Sheriff Flores said his sources spoke of a huge gun battle among the cartels in recent weeks with 15 or so men shot, but said that no word of the battle appeared in print. Diana Fuentes, the editor of the Laredo Morning Times, the American town's lively newspaper, said she too heard rumours of the battle, but could not confirm it.

She said the Mexican authorities were unable to match words with action, despite the deployment of hundreds of agents and troops to Nuevo Laredo. "The feeling is that the Mexican authorities are just not in control."

Immigration debate splits Christian right

Washington -- Religious conservatives bared their internal struggles over immigration Thursday at an unusually frank public debate, demonstrating that the most powerful faction of the Republican Party is as divided as the party itself on the issue.

Torn between the values of Christian compassion and a disapproval of lawbreaking -- with an undercurrent of angst about cultural change -- social conservatives and their political allies squared off in the face of internal polls that show their "values voters" overwhelmingly prefer strong border security.

The Family Research Council, which sponsored Thursday's debate, surveyed its members earlier this month and found that by a ratio of 9 to 1, they believe illegal immigrants should be "detected, arrested and returned to their country of origin."

The Rev. Samuel Rodriguez of Sacramento, head of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference, said he was concerned by a new Pew Hispanic Center poll released Wednesday that found two-thirds of white evangelicals consider new immigrants to be a burden and a threat to American culture.

"My message to the white evangelicals would be, Hispanic immigrants resonate more with your values than many other constituencies or groups," Rodriguez said. "They are God-fearing, hard-working, family-loving people. And if that doesn't look a lot like the Joneses and Smiths of Alabama and Arkansas and Michigan, other than the color of their skin, I don't know what would."

As with the larger national immigration debate, evangelical leaders could be more willing than the public they represent to offer earned citizenship to the 12 million illegal immigrants now in the country.

Dr. Richard Land, head of the Southern Baptist Convention, the nation's largest non-Catholic denomination representing millions of white evangelicals, announced at the meeting his endorsement of a bipartisan immigration plan in the Senate that is backed by most Democrats, some Republicans and President Bush. The program includes a way for many illegal immigrants living in the country today to become permanent residents and ultimately U.S. citizens.

"As citizens of the United States, we have an obligation to support the government and the government's laws for conscience sake," Land wrote in an essay on the Baptist Press Web site explaining his position. "As citizens of the Lord's heavenly Kingdom ... we also have a divine mandate to act redemptively and compassionately toward those who are in need. Jesus commanded us to love our neighbors as ourselves (Matthew 22:39) and to do unto others as we would have them do unto us (Matthew 7:12)."

Religious conservatives usually lead the Republican charge on social issues from same-sex marriage to abortion. But they have been quiet on immigration.

"We are wrestling with it," said Connie Mackey, head of government affairs for the Family Research Council. "We have varying positions within the organization, but I think the bottom line if we were to take any position, it would be that we've got to do something to pay attention to the laws that are on the books right now, and then the second part is the hardest part: what to do about those people who are here now."

Mackey said no consensus exists other than to be "compassionate but firm."

Restrictionists battled expansionists in the free-wheeling debate. Rep. Tom Tancredo, a firebrand Colorado Republican, demanded that Bush send the military to the Mexican border.

"The president of the United States, tomorrow if he wanted to, could end this problem," Tancredo said. "He certainly has the power to apply military assets."

Tancredo said there were some Republicans in Congress who are "probably glad to see the price of gas go up so we can talk about something else besides immigration."

John O'Sullivan, editor-at-large of the conservative National Review, accused Catholic bishops of falling under the sway of secular multiculturalists. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, which strongly backs legalization, is "uncomfortably close to the libertarians who view the United States not as a community but simply as a place," O'Sullivan said.

But Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan. -- who converted to Catholicism in 2002 -- staunchly defended the Senate plan he helped craft.

"Any one of you in this room today, if you knew anybody that was in a tough position, if their family member was sick or dying or they were hurting or they needed a cup of water or they needed food, not one of you right now wouldn't do that exactly for those individuals even if they were illegal undocumented immigrants," Brownback said. "You know you would do that. You know that nothing would stop you from doing that.

"We all came from somewhere," he said. "If I have no option to feed my family in any legitimate way, we can see ourselves maybe jumping across the line ourselves. ... I don't want to face my maker without every day, every minute, having tried to have done what I think is the moral thing to do, even if it's politically difficult."

Laura Esquivel, director of issues marketing for the liberal People for the American Way, said after the debate, "They're in a real pickle here."

She found it odd that the Family Research Council was refusing to take the position endorsed by 90 percent of its own members. "They're in the same conundrum as the Republican Party," she said. "They've made all these inroads, or have tried to, in the Hispanic community, and it is going up in smoke over this issue."

Mexican lawmakers will travel to Los Angeles to support immigrant protests

MEXICO CITY – Mexican lawmakers issued a declaration of support for immigrant protests planned in the United States on Monday and said they will send a delegation to Los Angeles to show their solidarity.

The declaration, issued late Thursday by all the political parties in the lower house of Congress, contrasts with the position of Mexico's Foreign Department, which has said it will discipline any consular officials who take part in the protests.

The delegation of lawmakers will meet with Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, it said in a news release from Congress.

“The only thing we are looking for is to end this dehumanizing situation and get the recognition of the migrant labor force,” Federal Deputy Maria Garcia said. “People who go looking for work should not be treated like criminals with the risk of being tried in federal courts.”

Activists are urging immigrants across the United States to skip work, avoid spending money and march in the streets to demonstrate their importance to the U.S. economy.

The protest, dubbed “A Day Without Immigrants,” comes as the U.S. Congress debates immigration bills proposing everything from toughened border security to the legalization of all 11 million undocumented migrants in America.

Activists south of border have called for a boycott of all U.S. businesses on Monday in support of the protests.

Mexicans living in the United States sent back home about $20 billion in remittances last year.

President Vicente Fox has lobbied relentlessly for an immigration reform in the United States. However, his administration has held back from getting involved the immigrant protests, saying it does not want to violate U.S. sovereignty.

L.A. mayor picks NFL talks over immigrant boycott

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Antonio Villaraigosa, Los Angeles' first Latino mayor in the modern era, will skip huge pro-immigration rallies planned for Monday to meet with pro football officials in Dallas, leaving organizers feeling like "a ship without a captain."

Oscar Sanchez, an organizer of the Great American Boycott in Los Angeles, said the mayor's office previously told the group he would speak at a downtown Los Angeles rally on Monday -- then backed out.

Instead, the mayor will be in Dallas speaking with National Football League officials about the possibility of bringing a team back to Los Angeles.

Activists said the rallies, which could become the largest protests since the civil rights era of the 1960s, would shut down major U.S. cities and serve as an indicator of their economic power, with or without the mayor.

They have predicted that 2 million to 3 million people would flood the streets of Los Angeles alone.

"It has been advertised everywhere and he is the mayor of the second-biggest city of the country where a boycott is going to happen. It would feel like a ship without a captain," Sanchez said.

A spokesman for Villaraigosa said the mayor had never promised to be present at Monday's immigration rallies -- part of a nationwide boycott and demonstration -- and that his Dallas trip had been in the works for a long time.

Villaraigosa, the son of a Mexican immigrant, has long championed immigrant rights. But he has urged restraint in the May Day event, asking protesters to be "lawful and respectful" and children to stay in school.

"He is not making us, he is not breaking us," Sanchez said. "This march is about the people, not about the mayor. I'd be hurt if people didn't show up."

An immigration rally on March 25 in Los Angeles drew at least 500,000 people and was credited with rattling Congress as it debates the divisive issue.

Immigration has split Congress, the Republican Party and public opinion. Conservatives want the estimated 12 million illegal immigrants returned to Mexico and a fence built along the border.

Others, including President George W. Bush, want a guest-worker program and a path to citizenship.

Many illegal immigrants arrested in raid already out of custody
BY ALLEN PUSEY
The Dallas Morning News

WASHINGTON - Ten days after a splashy 26-state immigration raid netted 1,187 arrests, about one in three of those apprehended are back on the streets, reflecting a fact of life that immigration officials say they live with every day.

"It's frustrating. It's complicated," said Dean Boyd, a spokesman for Immigration and Customs Enforcement. "But those are the cards we're dealt."

The complex, multi-agency raid April 19 on 52 worksites operated by IFCO Services, a Dutch-owned pallet service company, was the largest such investigation and operation ever undertaken by immigration agents, according to federal authorities.

But a look at what's happened to those taken into custody last week, say experts familiar with the system, reflect the problems of immigration enforcement as much as the operation's success. About 270 have already been deported voluntarily. Roughly 460 of those arrested are still behind bars - some awaiting immigration proceedings, some being held on prior warrants and some unable to make bond. Another 50 have been referred to other agencies, mostly in law enforcement, Boyd said.

For a variety of reasons, another 400 of the illegal workers arrested have already been processed and released - some because they have families living with them or no criminal records or they are needed for witnesses - often on a promise to appear in court when they are asked.

Tamara Jacoby, an immigration expert with the conservative Manhattan Institute, says the diverse outcomes as well as the raid itself shows the obstacles to effective immigration enforcement.

"They (immigration authorities) haven't done many big raids in years," Jacoby said. "They'd pretty much given up on workplace raids. They didn't find it very effective for exactly the reason that these numbers reflect. Some are jailed. Some go home. Some are back on the street."

T.J. Bonner, president of the National Border Patrol Council, the union representing Border Patrol agents, said the numbers pale in comparison to the problem.

"Break it down statistically, and it doesn't add up to much," Bonner said. "As impressive as it was, these raids are the result of very complex investigations and there are only a handful of them. There are an estimated 8 million undocumented workers on worksites in the U.S.; in the end, it's just a drop in the bucket."

In Dallas, 93 illegal workers were arrested, all from Mexico. Of those, 90 agreed to be deported.

In Houston, of 67 arrested, according to a Houston ICE spokeswoman, only 12 were actually deported. The rest were released.

"We want them around in case we need them as witnesses," said Luisa Aquino-Deason. "If we need them, we know where they are."

The fact that the agency has only 20,800 beds nationwide for detainees influences detention decisions, Boyd said. In the northeast, where illegal IFCO workers were arrested on worksites in Albany, Philadelphia and Boston, all those apprehended are likely to remain behind bars because space is available. In the Southwest, by contrast, voluntary deportation is more practical and effective, allowing ICE to incarcerate illegal immigrants who may pose a danger or be flight risks.

"We are required by law to detain illegal immigrants who have committed crimes or have criminal records, so sometimes we have no choice," Boyd said. "We'd much rather release someone who's been arrested for working illegally than someone who has committed a rape."

But even those who are voluntarily deported are likely positioning themselves for a return to the United States, Bonner said. By agreeing to deportation, rather than going through the time and expense of a hearing, the consequences will be less if they return and are caught.

"That's why they do it: so it won't count against them the next time they're arrested," Bonner said.

A previous deportation order carries additional penalties for a repeat offender.

Jacoby agreed.

"That's the bargain that they (ICE) have been forced to make. It's not worth the time to detain them for formal deportation proceedings, and by leaving voluntarily, the illegal immigrants make it easier to return," Jacoby said.

Federal prosecutor Tina Sciocchetti, in Albany, N.Y., where the ICE investigation originated, said that despite the large numbers of arrests, her office is more interested in prosecuting seven IFCO managers arrested in the sweep than those who happened to be working that day.

She said her office decided to let the illegal workers deal with the immigration consequences, rather than charge them with crimes.

"We thought that was the fair thing to do," Sciocchetti said.

But while 400 of those workers remain in jail, the seven managers who were arrested have been released from jail. Three who were arrested in Albany were allowed to post a $20,000 unsecured bond - requiring no upfront money. Those arrested outside Albany were released on their own recognizance with orders to report to a federal magistrate in Albany on May 4.

Immigration officials nab kids to net parents

In an unusual move designed to net an illegal immigrant couple, immigration officials in Toronto went to a school and threatened to take away two young sisters if their parents didn't turn themselves in.

The officials then took the sisters, who are seven and 14-years-old, and their Costa Rican mother to a detention centre.

They were eventually released into the care of a friend.

The girls' Costa Rican father, who remains in hiding, told the Toronto Star he was shocked by the action.

"This is very strange. I don't understand what happened," Alvaro Serdas told the newspaper, speaking through an interpreter.

Serdas is hiding from immigration officials with his other two daughters, fearing officials intend to capture the entire family.

Immigration ordered the family to return to Costa Rica last year.

A border services official told the Star the officials' tactics contradict federal policy, though she could not confirm any details of what had allegedly taken place.

Anna Pape, a spokeswoman for the Canada Border Services Agency, said officials try to avoid tactics that would cause illegal immigrants to keep their children out of school for fear of having them used against them.

"What took place was contrary to CBSA protocols and the family has been re-placed,'' Pape told the newspaper.

"We don't want to create a situation where parents without status or facing removal keep their kids out of school.''

Another Costa Rican family is also facing deportation after immigration officials attended another Toronto school this week.

By contrast, normal protocol was followed in that investigation.

The family's two teenage children were pulled from their classrooms and taken to the principal's office on Thursday, where officials were waiting with their mother, Francella Sossa.

A tipster had alerted police to the family's illegal status, and officials had already apprehended Sossa and the children's grandparents.

That family came to Canada in 2001 on a visitor visa. They then applied for refugee status, claiming they would be in danger from drug dealers if they were forced to return to their homeland.

In the second case, the father of the children, Gerald Lizano, is also in hiding with a warrant out for his arrest.

They family is expected to face deportation.

Members of the Portuguese community have raised concern recently, claiming the Conservative government is cracking down on immigrants from that nation.

Immigration Minister Monte Solberg, however, said deportations are actually down by more than half in the past year compared to the number of deportations under the previous Liberal government.

Solberg said 400 Portuguese immigrants were deported by this time last year, compared to 166 so far this year.

After meeting with the Portuguese foreign minister, Solberg said the government is looking at options for dealing with foreign workers in Canada.

He acknowledged the government needs to be sensitive and compassionate when dealing with the issue.

Groups rally in Minneapolis for tighter immigration controls


MINNEAPOLIS - About 75 people who fought the rain and cold to attend a rally at the federal courthouse Saturday heard calls for tighter immigration controls and demands that more immigrants adopt English.

A small Minnesota organization calling itself Minnesotans Seeking Immigration Reform headlined the rally but was joined by the Minuteman Project, a national volunteer group that patrols the border to keep out illegal immigrants.

"What we are trying to do is bring awareness to the citizens of Minnesota concerning the issue of illegal immigration," said Ruthie Hendrycks, a rural New Ulm woman who founded the Minnesota group. Hendrycks said the group wants the government to close the country's borders and toughen its immigration laws.

Bryan Kuntz, a Chaska man who attended the rally, complained that he can't communicate with many people in the building where he lives because they don't speak English. He also said he disagreed with proposals in Congress that would allow many illegal immigrants to remain in the country.

"We don't legalize behavior because of numbers," he said. "Sheer numbers of people breaking the law doesn't call for change."

The crowd gathered around a tent-covered podium to hear the speakers while people in the crowd held signs that read "Our National Anthem is in English" and "Enforce our Laws." One man gave Hendrycks a $1,000 check for Minnesotans Seeking Immigration Reform.

The Minuteman Project executive director Stephen Eichler also spoke, telling the group his organization supports "all those good folks who believe in the United States of America and citizenship.

"Citizenship is precious and not something to be taken for granted," he said.

Organizers said they chose the courthouse as the site for their rally because it's where immigrants take citizenship oaths.

The rally came two days before immigrants planned to boycott work and school, in Minnesota and across the country, for a day to show their importance to the economy and education. Thousands of immigrants also turned out earlier this month at the Capitol for a rally.

The Rev. Jesse Peterson of the California-based Brotherhood Organization of New Destiny, which helps troubled young men, delivered an opening prayer. Peterson said black citizens are suffering in California because of illegal immigration.

He said the black community was losing out to illegal immigrants in schools, jobs and housing. "In south central L.A., in Compton, (blacks are) being run out of their own community," Peterson said. "This is not a civil rights issue, this is a moral issue."

Eichler said Minnesotans could expect the same without stronger checks on the flow on newcomers into the country.

Opposing Immigration Groups To Rally Day Early

"This is not a racist issue. The time has come for Americans to show we want laws enforced."

FORT COLLINS, Colo. A day ahead of most of the rest of the nation this university town will see dueling rallies over immigration policy.

And it will be at the same time and same place: Old Town.

Their plans are peaceful, say both groups, Fuerza Latina and Northern Coloradans for Immigration Reduction.

Fort Collins police are not expecting any problems, but additional officers will be on duty, said Sgt. Jeremy Yonce.

"This is not a racist issue. The time has come for Americans to show we want laws enforced," said NCIR spokesman Tim Wunsch. "If we let everyone come who wanted a better life, we'd lose a lot."

Fuerza had been organizing like other immigration rights groups for a Monday March but decided Sunday would bring more people out.

"We need comprehensive immigration reform to fix what's broken in this country," said Kim Salinas, immigration attorney. "What we don't need are punitive, unworkable laws like the ones coming from the House."

"People in office the last few years can't talk about the economy or Iraq or Osama bin Laden or weapons of mass destruction," she said. "So now it's 'Let's blame everything on the undocumented worker.' Unfortunately, people have taken that bait. Hook, line and sinker," said Sylvia Martinez.

A look at the immigration-reform march planned for Monday

Organizers of Monday's march in support of immigration reform say they expect hundreds of thousands of people to participate in downtown Chicago.
Here are some details about the march:

_ TIME: Ten a-m at Union Park on the city's near West Side. The march begins at noon and will travel downtown though Chicago's business district, ending in Grant Park.

_ BOYCOTT: Unlike other immigrant rights groups in other cities, organizers of the Chicago rally stress they are not calling for a work stoppage and student boycott on Monday.

_ CROWD SIZE: More than 100-thousand people participated in a similar rally held March Tenth. Organizers say they are better coordinated now and expect up to 500-thousand people.

_ SAFETY: Chicago police say they'll have extra officers on duty and will line riot gear-clad officers along the route.

_ SIGNIFICANCE: The march will commemorate May Day, the international holiday honoring laborers.

No. 1 employers of day laborers? Homeowners
Use of illegal immigrant workers becoming mainstream in U.S.

BURBANK, Calif. - Chris James needed help moving a piano and three dozen boxes of records from his music studio, but instead of corralling some buddies he rented a truck and hired day laborers outside the local Home Depot.

The two Guatemalan men finished the job in an hour and a half, hauling a piano and wedging a sofa into his condo, then stacking the boxes in a back room, for less than $40.

It was first time James hired day laborers but it won’t be his last.

“Absolutely satisfied,” said James, 31.

The No. 1 employers of day laborers, many of whom are illegal immigrants, are homeowners — not construction contractors, not professional landscapers.

“Day labor is not a niche market,” said Abel Valenzuela, a UCLA professor and one of three authors of the first national day labor study, which was released in January. “It’s now entering different aspects of the national mainstream economy.”

Forty-nine percent of day labor employers are homeowners, according to 2,660 laborers interviewed for the study. Contractors were second, at 43 percent. The study also found that three quarters of day laborers were illegal immigrants and most were from Latin America.

Homeowners like the men who call themselves “jornaleros” because they make up a flexible labor pool with no red tape and no overhead. And they’ll do backbreaking jobs much cheaper than regular contractors.

Symbiotic relationship
Day laborers like homeowners, too. Shady contractors routinely stiff them. Not homeowners — the workers know where they live.

“And in houses, they give us food, water and soda,” said Herminio Velazquez, 48, one of the men who worked at James’s condo.

While some homeowners are uncomfortable hiring people who likely have no work documents, they often don’t believe they are doing wrong.

That position is rejected by anti-illegal immigration activists.

“They know they are hiring illegal aliens and breaking the law,” said Joseph Turner, who is trying to force San Bernardino to outlaw taxpayer-funded day labor centers. “They are contributing to the illegal immigration problem.”

Agents for Immigration and Customs Enforcement occasionally arrest day laborers, but they almost never go after homeowner employers. Their priorities are national security work sites such as seaports and the networks that smuggle illegal immigrants into the country.

“We need to stop unlawful employment,” said agency spokeswoman Virginia Kice. “But working day laborers sites is not an efficient way to use finite resources.”

Debate stirs passions
The federal debate on immigration reform has been on either criminalizing illegal immigrants — a proposal that has stirred widespread protest demonstrations — or giving them temporary work visas that might eventually lead to citizenship. Though Senate leaders promise progress, legislation may not pass in this election year.

David Peters, a 37-year-old salesman, is bothered by illegal immigration and believes he’s part of the problem, but he says it isn’t always possible to hire people with work papers.

He hired day laborers over several months while remodeling his Hermosa Beach house. One man tiled a floor and installed a granite countertop for $1,000, jobs that Peters estimated would cost $5,000 if he used the Yellow Pages.

“I know if they didn’t have a job, they wouldn’t be here,” said Peters. “But we all shop at Target and Wal-Mart, and all their stuff is made overseas with cheap labor.”

A helping hand
Maxine Colby started hiring day laborers after her husband died six years ago because she needed somebody to clear brush, pull weeds, trim trees and wash windows. She pays them $11 an hour and serves them a hot lunch.

“They have been fantastic,” said the 78-year-old Malibu resident. “I speak a little Spanish, and they speak a little English, and we have a good time.”

She doesn’t ask about immigration status or worry about breaking the law.

“This is a system that works for most people,” she said. “If lawmakers can’t figure out how to fix it, I certainly can’t.”

Minutemen say they've made a difference, but critics disagree

As their month-long border deployment draws to an end, leaders of the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps say their efforts have brought more attention to the illegal immigration issue and more supporters to their border security movement.

Critics are less generous in their assessment, and the U.S. Border Patrol is maintaining its neutral position on the hundreds of volunteers watching for illegal entrants in Southern Arizona.

"It's helped to gather more volunteers, and it's also helped to further debate," said Stacey O'Connell, state director of the group that opposes illegal immigration and demands government action to secure the border.

"This is the time to make the nation aware of how poor our border security is, and I think we've been very successful in doing that this month."

Jennifer Allen, director of the immigrant rights advocacy group Border Action Network, said the group's presence along the border have done nothing to bring real solutions to the problems along the border.

"They further distract the general public and policymakers from real solutions that can provide for meaningful immigration reform and that can provide for real security on the border."

The Minutemen, Allen said, are clouding the immigration reform issue.

"They continue to provoke fear and have been inciting anti-immigrant violence," she said.

However, there have been no reports of violence connected with any Minuteman operations since the inception of the organization.

Despite that fact, Alessandra Soler Meetze, executive director of the American Civil Liberties-Arizona chapter, said its observers have been present to "document and observe as best we can in hopes of deterring violence."

Meetze claims that there have been two minor, nonviolent incidents in Arizona this month.

Arizona is the nation's busiest point for illegal immigrants crossing from Mexico, with a corridor southwest of Tucson experiencing some of the heaviest traffic. Minutemen have set up observation posts there this month.

Since April 1, several hundred Minuteman volunteers have spent time stationed on private ranch lands, watching for and phoning in sightings to the Border Patrol.

Minuteman chapters also have been active along both the Mexican and Canadian borders.

As of Thursday, O'Connell said Minuteman observers had reported to the Border Patrol seeing 1,300 people crossing through the Arizona desert this month. They also confirmed arrests of 601 of those people, he said.

But according to Border Patrol figures, citizen calls of sightings dropped significantly in April compared to the month before the Minuteman operations; so did apprehensions throughout the Tucson sector.

In March, there were 1,240 calls, but the number dropped to 955 through Wednesday, said agency spokesman Gustavo Soto. In addition, apprehensions of illegal immigrants dropped by 19,000, or 30 percent, from March through the first 26 days of April, Soto said.

Border Patrol spokesmen have said officials are neutral about the Minutemen, neither endorsing their observe-and-report efforts nor criticizing them.

"We don't know what kind of impact they made, if any," said Chuy Rodriguez, another spokesman for the patrol.

"We don't distinguish to see who's making the (citizen) calls."

Mike Albon, a spokesman for Local 2544, a union representing Border Patrol agents in the Tucson sector, said, "We haven't had any complaints of the Minutemen interfering with normal operations."

He said he also did not know whether their efforts could be classified as helpful or a hindrance. "We're basically neutral to their activity, but they have not interfered, so that's a plus."

In fact, he said legal observers affiliated with the American Civil Liberties Union's Arizona chapter watching the Minutemen to prevent any harassment or rights violations of illegal immigrants "have interfered more" than the Minutemen.

O'Connell accused ACLU volunteers of shining flashlights in the faces of Minutemen at night and of videotaping them and their license plates. He also said they have flashed lights into the desert, honked horns and made other noise, allegedly to alert illegal immigrants coming through the area that Minutemen were present.

"If that's what they're doing, that would definitely at night interfere with our operations," Albon said.

Meetze, the ACLU director, said, "That's not our intention and that's not the way that we operate and intend to operate. We're not there to get involved and to interfere with the work of the Border Patrol."

The goal of the ACLU's volunteers, she said, is to be observers.

The Minutemen, she acknowledged, "have been able to exercise their free speech and get their message across that they don't agree with the way our government is enforcing immigration laws."

The ACLU also is present, she added, "to enable them to express their rights. They have a right to express themselves. They just don't have a right to cross the line and take the law into their own hands."

The Minutemen will continue volunteer patrol activities in states where the group has chapters one weekend each month as well as monthly operations each April and October, said O'Connell.

He said Arizona's Minutemen now have an excellent relationship with Border Patrol agents on the ground, as well as some supervisors. "The trust level is there," he said.

One supervisor, he said, "was just ecstatic that we were there and able to help in this way."

But he also said that there is fear among rank-and-file agents of retribution from superiors if they show or publicly express support for the Minutemen.

Rodriguez, the Border Patrol spokesman, said, "I couldn't speak for that comment at all."

U.S. Prepares for 'Day Without Immigrants'

DENVER (AP) - Thousands of illegal immigrants and their allies across the country plan a show of force Monday to illustrate how much immigrants matter in the U.S. economy.

Some will skip work, others will protest at lunch breaks, school walkouts or at rallies after work. There are planned church services, candlelight vigils, picnics and human chains.

Hector Castillo, a Denver baker usually keeps his doors open 360 days a year. But anybody looking for his Mexican pastries or cookies will be out of luck Monday when Castillo plans to close his doors in sympathy with immigrants. For Castillo, 45, it's a protest against legislation in the U.S. House that would make it a felony to be an illegal immigrant.

"About 80 percent of our customers are Latin people, most of them Mexican, and the proposed law will affect all of us," he said.

Thanks to the success of previous rallies plus media attention, planning for Monday's events, collectively called Un Dia Sin Inmigrantes - A Day Without Immigrants - is widespread, though fragmented.

"It's highly unpredictable what's going to happen," said Harley Shaiken, director of the Center for Latin American studies at the University of California. "What unites everyone that's going to do something on May 1 is they are making visible their strong feelings."

New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson said Monday he was concerned that the demonstrations "are going to be a distraction from what the real issue is, and that is the need for comprehensive immigration reform."

Rather than a boycott, immigrants should work to pressure Congress to pass legislation that would allow those already in the country to earn U.S. citizenship, Richardson told CBS'"The Early Show."

Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., told CBS that the U.S. should first secure its borders to stem illegal immigration. "I would then prefer to see us come up with some way to let" immigrants here "pay a fine, pay a price, then learn English and get on a path to citizenship."

On the eve of the protest, about 3,000 people rallied for immigrant rights at a park in Lynwood, a heavily Hispanic Los Angeles suburb. Organizers of the demonstration called on residents and businesses to support the boycott.

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa urged students to stay in school during the day and advised protesters against waving flags of their native countries.

"You should wave the American flag," he said. "It's the flag of the country that we all are proud of and want to be a part of. Don't disrespect the traditions of this country."

A rally in Chicago representing the city's Arab, Asian, black, eastern European and Hispanic communities, along with labor groups and religious leaders, could bring out as many as half a million people, organizers say. They urged immigrant workers to ask for time off and encouraged students to get permission to attend the demonstration.

"Stand in solidarity with people of all races and nationalities because immigration legislation does not just affect one group; it affects everyone!" Sadiya Ahmed, with the Council on American-Islamic Relations, wrote in a recent e-mail.

In smaller cities such as Allentown, Pa.; Omaha, Neb.; and Knoxville, Tenn., immigrants and their allies have been going door to door with fliers, making posters and sharpening speeches. In New Mexico, restaurants cooked meals this weekend to donate to picnics Monday in Santa Fe and Albuquerque.

In Pomona, Calif., about 30 miles east of Los Angeles, dozens of men who frequent a day labor center voted unanimously to close Monday, said Mike Nava, the center's director.

In New Jersey, Rhode Island, Oregon and Pennsylvania, people boycotting work will march to the offices of elected officials to urge them to support pro-immigrant legislation.

Activists in Florida said many immigrants were concerned about recent federal raids, in which hundreds of immigrants with criminal backgrounds were rounded up in Florida and throughout the Midwest.

"We're not officially coordinating a work stoppage. We are leaving it up to every individual. We don't want people to lose a job, but we want to encourage people to stand up for their rights," said Maria Rodriguez, head of the Florida Immigrant Coalition.

In California, a spokeswoman for Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said a boycott would "hurt everyone," while Democratic state senators passed a resolution supporting walkouts.

Opponents of illegal immigration spent the weekend building a fence to symbolize their support of a secure border. About 200 volunteers organized by the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps of California worked on a 6-foot barbed-wire fence along a quarter-mile stretch of rugged terrain near the U.S.-Mexico border about 50 miles east of San Diego.

In each of New York City's five boroughs, thousands of workers were expected to take work breaks shortly after noon to link arms with shoppers, restaurant-goers and other supporters for about 20 minutes.

"This will symbolize the interdependence of all of us, not just immigrants, but all of society," said Chung-Wa Hong, executive director of the New York Immigration Coalition.

Some big businesses are shutting down operations: Six of 14 Perdue Farms plants will close; Gallo Wines in Sonoma, Calif., is giving its 150 employees the day off; Tyson Foods Inc. (TSN), the world's largest meat producer, will shut five of its nine beef plants and four of six pork plants.

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops urged immigrants to attend Mass instead of boycotting, and suggested that churches toll their bells in memory of immigrants who died trying to come to the U.S. They also urged students to stay in school.

Denver-area contractor Chuck Saxton, who hires temporary workers, is sympathetic to the movement. "I'm going to go to support them. These guys come here, they work hard and they're honest," he said. "They provide a vibrancy to our economy and our country that is fading."

Events Related to Day Without Immigrants



— A few of the events planned for A Day Without Immigrants:

_ Boycotts: Central theme of the day, with immigrants being urged to boycott work, school and shopping. In Tucson, Ariz., an organizer urged "no buying at all," not even calls to Mexico.

_ Rallies: In New York City, immigrants and supporters planned to form human chains in several spots around lunch time. Advocates planned to march in Orlando, Fla., Allentown, Pa., and Seattle, among many other cities. In downtown Louisville, Ky., a procession was scheduled from the federal courthouse to Jefferson Park.

_ Services: Roman Catholic churches holding immigration-themed Masses. Cardinal Justin Rigali of Philadelphia planned deliver a homily about immigration reform during a noon Mass.

_ Schools: New Haven, Conn., schools were bracing for a walkout, as were school officials in Denver. In Gainesville, Ga., administrators sent a letter home to parents saying absences would not be tolerated.

Citizens urged to shop Monday
Hoosiers against illegal immigration, for border controls plan to demonstrate economic power

Hoosiers concerned about illegal immigration are encouraging like-minded citizens to "shop till you drop" Monday as a counter to the national "Day Without Immigrants" protest.
   
"We want the business people to know there are a lot of people like us, who are very worried about the negative impact of illegal immigration and who spend money at their business," said Greg Serbon, Crown Point, state director of the Indiana Federation for Immigration Reform and Enforcement.
Organizers nationwide are calling on immigrants to skip work and school, buy nothing and sell nothing Monday, although key local leaders are urging them to show up for jobs and classes.
Serbon and about 25 others upset at what they see as the government's lack of action on illegal immigration took their concerns to the streets Friday with a protest in Downtown Indianapolis during the lunch hour. They were scheduled to return today.
The goal of the protest was to get the attention of Sens. Richard Lugar, R-Ind., and Evan Bayh, D-Ind., who Serbon said are failing their constituents by not taking a hard stand on closing the border with Mexico and enforcing immigration laws.
Protesters who gathered near the corner of Illinois and Market streets held signs with slogans including "Honk to stop illegal immigration" and "Close our borders now."
"We've got a lot of positive responses," Serbon said. "We've had a few people who don't like what we have to say, but that's to be expected."
Natisha Cooper, 41, Indianapolis, co-chairwoman of the Marion County chapter of the group, said it is getting harder to express negative opinions about illegal immigration.
"Many people are afraid to speak up because they will be labeled as racist," she said.
Serbon said the protesters are not racists or opposed to immigration. They want newcomers to obey the laws and, if they don't, they want the government to enforce the laws.
Participants came from FortWayne, South Bend, Seymour, Valparaiso, Michigan City and Columbus, in addition to Indianapolis.

Tyson to shutter plants over immigration protest
Meat producer to close nine undisclosed plants as company expects worker shortages on day of nationwide protest.


Tyson Foods Inc. said Friday it would close a number of its meat processing plants Monday in response to a planned nationwide protest by immigrant workers.

The meat processor said nine of its more than 100 plants would suspend operations for the day because of an expected lack of workers.

A nationwide series of boycotts and marches are planned for May 1 by pro-immigrant activists as part of an effort to urge Congress to grant amnesty to the estimated 11.5 to 12 million unauthorized immigrants living in the United States.

"We understand the sentiment behind the May 1st events, but we are not encouraging workers to participate in the rally," Tyson spokesman Gary Mickelson told CNN.

Mickelson said the nine Tyson (down $0.07 to $14.48, Research) facilities that will be closed are red meat plants, but he would not reveal which specific plants would be closed.

Minutemen volunteers build fence to protest illegal immigration

As immigrants and their supporters prepared for a massive boycott, opponents of illegal immigration went to work building a border fence meant to symbolize their support of a secure border.

About 200 volunteers organized by the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps of California began building a six-foot barbed wire fence Saturday along a quarter-mile stretch of rugged terrain in Boulevard, about 50 miles east of San Diego.

Tim Donnelly, the group's leader, said volunteers ate apple pie and hot dogs as they worked on the fence, which was connected to an existing 12-foot high fence previously built by the federal government.

The volunteers wanted to send a message to Congress that the government should block entry to the United States and not grant amnesty to illegal immigrants, Donnelly said.

Thousands of immigrants and their supporters are expected to boycott work and schools Monday to raise awareness of their contributions to society.

"This was largely sent as a message to Congress so they'll see on May 1, there are jobs that even illegal immigrants don't want to do, but Americans are more than willing to do them," Donnelly said, referring to the fence-building.

Donnelly said before the event he called a local contact at the U.S. Border Patrol and told him what the volunteers planned to do. He declined to name the local contact.

Department of Homeland Security spokesman Richard Kite said Saturday there had been "no indications our operations or the property of the Border Patrol have been tampered with or altered in any way by citizen groups."

Iowa adjusts to flood of Hispanic immigrants

DES MOINES, Iowa (Reuters) - Even deep in the Midwest, far from the Mexican border, communities like Marshalltown, Iowa, will feel the impact of a nationwide economic boycott planned by immigrant groups on Monday.

"I think a number of services will be shut down because of the lack of labor that day. Of course the whole point of this is to demonstrate to people throughout Iowa the growing importance of this population to our economy," said Mark Gray, an anthropologist at the University of Northern Iowa.

In Marshalltown in central Iowa near Des Moines, Mexican-owned El Vaquero western wear is a few doors down from a mainstay like Barb's Boutique, evidence immigrants are rejuvenating this once-shrinking town of 26,000 people.

Hispanic-owned retailers and restaurants have sprung up in the shadows of the Swift & Co. meatpacking plant, the town's largest employer and one of several plants across the Midwest serving as magnets for immigrants.

Hispanics have established themselves in smaller cities and towns across the Midwest, drawn to the region by what demographers say has been high employment rates and conservative values favoring families.

Polls show most Iowans believe immigrants "take jobs other Iowans don't want," such as cutting and packaging meat where hard work, not education or English proficiency, is required.

Spanish is taught along with English at a Marshalltown elementary school, where two-thirds of the students are the sons and daughters of Mexican immigrants.

Language instructor Tomasa Fonseca said she will not join Monday's protest in what has been billed nationally as a day without immigrants.

"I expect a regular day in Marshalltown," said Fonseca, 38, who immigrated from Mexico in 1993.

"NEW IOWANS"

A university-run program called "New Iowans" aims to acclimate Hispanic immigrants to predominantly white rural Iowa, Gray said. Iowa's Hispanic population ballooned by 150 percent between 1990 and 2000 to 2.8 percent of its 3 million people.

"We've seen more entrepreneurship out of the Hispanic community," said Republican state Sen. Larry McKibben.

"We have Main Street retail businesses that have started in the past five years so you're seeing a transition from people who simply work for somebody else when they came here."

A pipeline opened a decade ago between Marshalltown and Villachuato, a poor village in Michoacan state in west central Mexico. It has changed the character of both.

Former Mayor Floyd Harthun led city leaders on trips to Villachuato to learn about Marshalltown's newest residents.

"We wanted to find out what was driving these people to a foreign land," Harthun said.

Villachuato was very poor, Harthun said, and the major concern was the loss of their young people. Marshalltown launched a campaign to persuade Mexican workers who had been migrating back and forth to stay in Iowa.

"We've worked really hard at including these people in Marshalltown," Harthun said. "We had just gone through quite a change. We went from a relatively small minority population of 1 or 2 percent to nearly 20 percent in a relatively short period of time."

Marshalltown Police Chief Lon Walker said Hispanics do not commit a disproportionate share of crimes but culture differences pose challenges.

Unable to recruit Hispanics, Walker's department relies on a translation service and a dozen bilingual residents. In one recent case, no one was willing to come forward to tell what they knew about the traffic death of an illegal immigrant, Walker said.

County official Gordie Johnson, who runs a restaurant, said the Hispanic influx has not caused government outlays to rise, though his own business suffered.

"I used to draw, for a customer base, from the whole (town) of 30,000. Now I draw from 20,000 because I get very, very, very few Spanish customers. It's not good or bad. I'm just saying."

Website targets racist Hispanics
Aims to 'counter the false information dished out by Mexican hate groups'

A website run by opponents of illegal immigration highlights the tactics of Hispanic activists who defend unlawful aliens, including the use of hate speech, profanity and calls for whites to be deported.

WeHateGringos.com begins with a warning that the site "contain graphic examples of hate and racism that has and is occurring in large cities and small towns across America."

States the site: "The website WeHateGringos.com is dedicated to exposing the other side of illegal immigration ... the side our president, many in Congress, the media and especially the racist hate groups do not want us to see."

WeHateGringos.com is meant as a response to the League of United Latin America Citizens, or LULAC, which reportedly created a website called WeAreRacists.com.

"It had photos of our friends, portrayed as racists. We were infuriated and decided to build a website," the newer site states.

While WeAreRacists.com is currently not an active website, records indicate it is licensed to LULAC.

"WeHateGringos.com is online to counter the false information dished out by Mexican hate groups and spoon-fed to Americans by the mainstream media," states the site.

An introductory Flash video includes audiotape of speakers at rallies denouncing whites and proclaiming that Latinos will take power in the United Sates.

States one pro-illegals speaker on the video: "We're here to show White Anglo-Saxon Protestants of L.A., the few of you who remain, that we are the majority; we claim this land as ours. … If anyone is going to be deported, it's going to be you!"

Another protester shouts: "Go back to Europe where you came from; go back to England!"

Many photos of signs used in pro-illegals rallies are included in the presentation, including "Minutemen, you've taken on a fight larger than you can imagine," and "We are standing in Mexico here!" – presumably at a rally in California.

Besides vulgar chants that cannot be reprinted, one crowd shouts in rhythm: "Our land, our continent, we're taking it back!"

Explains the FAQ page on the site:

"The photos and soundtrack (that make up the intro video) are from real events that happened in California and Virginia. It was never shown on the news, talked about on radio, or written in the newspaper. We knew it was about time to let all Americans know what we know. Illegal aliens are not all 'good people looking for a job.' Federally funded racist Hispanic organizations are not simply 'educating' their people, they are inciting illegal aliens to riot and to demand 'rights' that they do not deserve."

The site is run by married couple Nathan and Linda Muller. Linda has worked for the campaigns of Patrick Buchanan and Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colo., the leading opponent of illegal immigration in Congress.

Included on the site is a message board, with one thread discussing today's rallies in favor of amnesty for illegals across the nation.

Posted Linda Muller: "I put off all my shopping for groceries, gas and other needs until today. I want American business to know we do not need illegal aliens. I almost wish I needed to go to the motor vehicle department, the bank, or even the hospital. What a pleasure it would be not to have to compete with illegal aliens for services.

"The roads will be safer and less congested, too. Maybe other Americans will notice that our country is better off without illegals and decide deportation is not a bad idea after all.

"It's a great day in the USA!"

As WorldNetDaily reported, the Mexica Movement helped organize a large Los Angeles pro-illegals rally in March. The organization believes it is the "non-indigenous," white, English-speaking U.S. citizens of European descent who have to leave what they call "our continent," not illegal aliens.

Bush 'not a fan' of immigrant boycott
But spokesman says 'people have the right to peacefully express their views'


Asked about the rallies around the nation today in support of illegal aliens, presidential press secretary Scott McClellan said President Bush is "not a fan of boycotts."

WND asked the spokesman about "the strongly Democrat vote of the California State Senate to support today's boycott of schools and stores, which they call 'The Great American Boycott 2006.'"

Responded McClellan: "The president expressed his views last Friday in a news conference out in the Rose Garden. The president is not a fan of boycotts. People have the right to peacefully express their views, but the president wants to see comprehensive reform pass the Congress so that he can sign it into law. And he thinks we have a real opportunity to get it done, and that's where he's going to keep his focus."

WND also asked McClellan about Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's description of Iran's president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, as a "psychopath of the worst kind, an anti-Semite who speaks today like Hitler."

While the spokesman would not go on the record agreeing that Ahmadinejad is a psychopath, he did say the leader has made "a number of outrageous and concerning statements."

Pressed WND: "So [Bush] agrees that this guy is a psychopath, right? Doesn't he?"

McClellan responded: "He is a leader who has made some outrageous comments."

"Psychopathic?"

"And that should only serve to further underscore the concerns about this regime having nuclear weapons."

Mexican flag burning on Cinco de Mayo
Man arrested last month to repeat act in protest of illegal-alien flow
Posted: May 2, 2006
1:00 a.m. Eastern


© 2006 WorldNetDaily.com


A Tucson man arrested last month after burning a Mexican flag in protest plans to burn another one this weekend during public Cinco de Mayo festivities.

Roy Warden was arrested April 11, the day after he burned a Mexican flag while demonstrating against the flow of illegal aliens into the United States over the southern border. The activist was not arrested on the scene but was picked up the next day – he says because members of the Tucson City Council requested the action after receiving complaints. Warden faces charges of assault, criminal damage and reckless burning. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges.

According to the Arizona Star, Warden and members of Border Guardians burned the flag at Armory Park surrounded by hundreds of pro-illegals demonstrators.

"Here in Tucson, Cinco de Mayo is a three-day celebration," Warden told WND, noting he would burn a Mexican flag at the most politically oriented pro-open borders public event, whether Friday, Saturday or Sunday.

"I will be surrounded by any number of Tucson police officers who will provide me with security so I may engage in this First Amendment activity," Warden said, noting he and the police "have a very warm and cordial relationship."

Warden claims the political atmosphere in Pima County is staunchly pro-illegal immigration, with "high-level county officials while on paid county time engaging in open-borders activity."

Added the activist: "It's absolutely the norm here in Pima County."

Warden says his goal is to get the Hispanics who are opposed to open borders to turn up the heat within their own community.

"I've gotten many calls from Hispanics who are lawful," he claimed. "They can't stand the crime; they can't stand the lower-paying jobs because they're getting kicked out of jobs [to make room for] people willing to work for nothing."

Warden added : "I want these lawful Hispanics to drive these people (illegals) out and tell them to go home."

The protester chose the Mexican flag to burn, he says, because it's being waved in demonstrations across the United States "as a symbol of political domination. It's not a cultural symbol; flags are a political symbol."

Warden's message to Mexicans in the U.S. illegally: "Go back to Mexico and overturn your own corrupt government. Don't come here and try to control ours."

Comparing his action to what civil-rights protesters did in the '60s, Warden said, "It's time to take extraordinary measures through the courts and through personal confrontation."

Said Warden: "We're talking about legal but extremely organized and extremely provocative First Amendment activities."

Warden says he does not expect to be arrested this weekend for burning the Mexican flag, saying he's sure he will be acquitted of April's charges after the police officers who witnessed his action testify in court.

Not even killer flu to shut U.S. border
Feds to limit international flights, quarantine travelers but do nothing to stem flow of people across boundary
Posted: May 2, 2006
1:00 a.m. Eastern


© 2006 WorldNetDaily.com

While nationwide demonstrations focus America's attention on the issue of illegal immigration and U.S. borders, the federal government will apparently not close the border even in the face of deadly bird flu or a super strain of influenza.

That according to a draft of the national response plan obtained by the Associated Press.

The report says a major outbreak of disease could prompt the government to limit international flights, quarantine exposed travelers and restrict movement in and around the country, with the exception of the border.

It notes "a complete shutdown of the border would not be likely, nor would it do more than slow the pandemic's spread by a few weeks," according to AP.

"While we will consider all options to limit the spread of a pandemic virus, we recognize complete border closure would be difficult to enforce, present foreign affairs complications and have significant negative social and economic consequences," the draft report says.

With estimates of up to 40 percent of the American workforce off the job in the case of a pandemic, government officials are preparing for a worst-case scenario of up to 2 million deaths in the U.S.

Since 2003, the H5N1 strain of bird flu has impacted more than 200 people, killing about half. Almost all of the victims had come in close contact with infected poultry or droppings.

The goal of the report is to prepare the private sector, as 85 percent of critical systems such as food production, medicine, and financial services are privately run.

"While a pandemic will not damage power lines, banks or computer networks, it has the potential ultimately to threaten all critical infrastructure by its impact on an organization's human resources by removing essential personnel from the workplace for weeks or months," the report says.

The response plan forecasts possible breakdowns in public order, with state governors deploying National Guard troops or even requesting federal troops to maintain order.

Boycott Gives Voice To Illegal Workers
The Day's Impact On Economy Unclear

By Darryl Fears and Krissah Williams
Washington Post Staff Writers
Tuesday, May 2, 2006; A01

Through rallies and boycotts of schools and businesses across the nation yesterday, illegal immigrants and their supporters sought to present a case to the American people that they are vital to the country's economy and should not be subject to deportation.

Demonstrators opposed to strict immigration proposals in Congress staged huge marches in Chicago and Los Angeles, curtailed operations at at least one major port, shut down construction sites in the District, forced the closing of crossings at the Mexican border and halted work at meat-processing plants in the Midwest. Although the protests caught the nation's attention, the economic impact was mixed, as many immigrants heeded the call of some leaders not to jeopardize their jobs, and businesses adopted strategies to cope with absent employees.

More than 300,000 demonstrators marched in Chicago, and another 300,000 took to the streets of Los Angeles to shout their disapproval of House measures that would make it a felony to be in the country illegally and to help those who are. In the District, more than 1,000 people rallied at Meridian Hill Park -- also known as Malcolm X Park -- in the Mount Pleasant neighborhood, and smaller rallies were held in Herndon, Alexandria and Baileys Crossroads. Immigrants also marched in San Francisco, Phoenix, Atlanta and many other cities.

The action may have been stronger had the coalition of grass-roots organizations that advises immigrants not been deeply conflicted over whether to endorse a boycott. Some supported the effort to demonstrate immigrant power, but others discouraged it, saying it was premature because Congress has not taken action since the first demonstrations, and because the strike might induce a backlash by those born in the United States.

"I think that for the most part, people in the community understood the reasons why . . . we asked them to go to work and go to school," said Jaime Contreras, president of the National Capital Immigration Coalition of Washington, part of an immigrant coalition that discourages boycotting before Congress can act. "Rest assured, if we don't have a bill we can live with, we will have a general strike and a general boycott."

Clearly, protesters in Washington did not want to wait that long. More than half of the 1,147 construction workers on projects at Dulles International Airport did not show up, said airports spokeswoman Tara Hamilton. Work on an underground tunnel linking airport terminals continued, but at a slower pace, she said.

Several businesses in the District, such as the Corner Bakery on Vermont Avenue downtown and La Chaumiere in Georgetown, shut their doors because their workers chose to boycott.

"Unfortunately, most of our kitchen staff is Spanish and they decided to be part of the movement," said La Chaumiere night manager Marielle Minges.

Oscar Mendez stayed home in Alexandria with his wife and three children. "We want to show the government that all the work in this country is impossible without us," said Mendez, who is El Salvadoran.

At Davis Construction, a large Rockville-based general contractor, many of the workers were absent yesterday. "We are missing them," chief executive Jim Davis said. "It is having an impact."

The protests drew few counter-demonstrations, though the chief House proponent of tough measures against illegal immigrants said the boycott would help his cause.

"I couldn't be happier, because every single time this kind of thing happens, the polls show that more and more Americans turn against the protesters and whatever it is they are trying to advance," Rep. Tom Tancredo (R-Colo.) told the Reuters news agency in an interview.

Still, the boycotters tried to make their presence felt wherever they could.

The boycott rippled through Prince George's County schools that serve many Latino immigrant families. About 150 Bladensburg Elementary students -- a quarter of the school's population -- stayed home. About 140 stayed home from Adelphi Elementary, more than one-third of that school's population. One school system official said attendance at several other schools was "way down."

At C.D. Hylton High School in Woodbridge, for example, 143 of 392 students did not show up. And more than half of the Latino students at Stonewall Jackson High School in Manassas were absent. Prince William school officials saw unusually high absentee rates among Hispanics, especially in high schools.

In Montgomery County, 70 schools reported more than 25 percent of their Latino students absent, said spokesman Brian K. Edwards. A spokesman for Fairfax schools reported higher-than-usual absenteeism but said "it's not spectacular." The principal at Annandale High School said 139 of 609 Hispanic students were absent.

Roxanne Evans, a spokeswoman for the D.C. schools, could not provide absentee figures but said that, according to preliminary reports, several schools appeared to have an unusually high number of absences.

High absentee rates were also reported in schools in other parts of the nation, particularly California. In Santa Ana, the Orange County seat, about 3,000 middle and high school students were absent. The 62,000-student district is about 90 percent Hispanic.

Ricardo Juarez, coordinator for Mexicans Without Borders in Northern Virginia, the most vocal local proponent of the boycott, called the action a success because of the construction slowdown and closed strips of Latino-owned businesses.

"What is happening around this region is a part of all the impact around the nation," he said.

At least a dozen meat-processing plants owned by Tyson Foods Inc. were forced to close, said spokesman Gary Mickelson, "but most of the more than 100 plants were running," he said. But, he added, "there were higher absentee rates than usual." Some of the plants that were closed will operate on Saturday to offset the lack of production.

In Chicago, flag-waving marchers paraded through downtown streets, chanting " ¡Si se puede! " and "Yes we can!" Though there was no boycott called there, businesses were shuttered throughout the city and suburbs as owners of restaurants, stores, insurance agencies, bars, auto repair outfits and other enterprises gave employees the day off, some with pay, to attend the march.

"The biggest message is we have a voice. This is something people have wanted to happen for a long time," said Rudy Martinez, 27, whose mother was born in Mexico. "A lot of us said, 'We have to do something before it's too late.' "

At the country's busiest port of entry, between Tijuana, Mexico, and San Ysidro, Calif., a surge of Mexican protesters heckled travelers coming into the United States and forced the border patrol to slow traffic at the 24-lane crossing. Protests also forced the temporary closing of crossings at Tecate, Calif., and Laredo and Hidalgo in Texas, where representatives of human rights groups, labor unions and Catholic churches, as well as deported Mexican immigrants, chanted, " ¡No va a pasar! " -- "You will not pass!"

The agriculture industry saw some impact in California's Central Valley, where growers are harvesting lettuce and thinning fruit trees. An estimated 30 to 40 percent of fieldworkers elected not to go to work Monday, said Manuel Cunha, president of the Nisei Farmers League.

At the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles -- which, averaging 30,000 truck trips a day, is the busiest combined U.S. seaport -- there was little or no truck traffic as thousands of truck drivers, mostly Latinos, stayed home.

"We have no truck activity," said Theresa Adams Lopez, spokeswoman for the Los Angeles port. Demonstrating truckers parked their rigs illegally to block roads leading into the port, but police had them towed, she said.

Art Wong, spokesman for the Long Beach port, said rail traffic was lighter than usual but functioning normally. Freight workers had prepared for the boycott by working overtime last week and throughout the weekend.

Adams Lopez said: "The point was made, but whether it's really going to shut down commerce remains to be seen."

Her refrain was echoed locally -- "It's not affecting us at all," said a harried maitre d' at Spago's in Beverly Hills -- and throughout the nation.

In Las Vegas, the strike's effect seemed minimal, perhaps because of hardball tactics adopted by the larger hotels.

The Wynn Las Vegas hotel and casino told its 10,000 employees that "if they called out and were not sick that they would be disciplined up to and including termination," said Arte Nathan, chief human resources officer. As a result, only two workers called in.

"We are amazed. We are thrilled," Nathan said.

The MGM-Mirage, which runs casinos such as the MGM-Grand, Treasure Island and the Bellagio, reported minimal absences among its 60,000 employees, about one-third of whom are Latino, spokeswoman Debra Nelson said.

Rock throwing reported in Santa Ana

By CINDY CARCAMO
The Orange County Register

SANTA ANA — Police asked other law enforcement agencies for help this afternoon after a group of 1,500 protesters jammed traffic on Bristol Street near 1st Street and Edinger Avenue and some started to hurls rocks, plastic bottles and marbles at officers.

“It’s starting to take a turn for the worse,” Santa Ana police Sgt. Lorenzo Carrillo said.

Sixteen officers at the scene were not injured by the thrown objects.

Assistance was requested about 6 p.m. As soon as more officers are on the scene, people who don’t leave the area will be arrested, Carrillo said.

The aggressive crowd members are different from those who marched downtown earlier today, he said.

The Santa Ana Police Department asked for an additional 100 agents from several departments, including Garden Grove, Orange County and Fountain Valley.

Some of the agencies had been called beforehand as the crowds grew larger and unmanageable, Lt. Dan McDermott said.

About 200 Santa Ana police officers, including 19 mounted police officers, patrolled the city Monday.

Earlier in the day, Santa Ana police asked grave-shift officers to come in about 90 minutes earlier than usual. When that wasn’t enough, officers who normally have the day off were called in.

When the crowds were still too large, other agencies were called, McDermott said.

“We’ve overcome our resources, now it’s time for help,” he said.

Feds Collar 66 in Human Trafficking Raids
    

By WAYNE PARRY
Associated Press Writer

NEWARK, N.J.

Federal agents rounded up 66 people Monday in a series of raids described by officials as smashing a ring that smuggled Mexicans into the United States and may have forced women to work as prostitutes.

Officers with the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement raided 15 locations in New Jersey and New York early Monday after New Jersey State Police pulled over two vehicles containing at least 10 women who had been working in brothels in Maryland, Virginia and Washington, said Kyle Hutchins, special agent in charge of the bureau's Newark office.

None of the alleged prostitution took place in New Jersey, authorities said. Rather, when their weekly or monthly shifts in Washington-area brothels were finished, the women would be driven to northern New Jersey and New York, Hutchins said.

Thirty-six women and 30 men were taken into custody, Hutchins said. Two were charged with illegal money transfer and the rest were being held on immigration charges alleging they were in this country illegally, he said.

It was at least the third major immigrant smuggling ring believed to be operating in New Jersey in recent years.

Authorities said prosecutions involving Russian strippers who were forced to work in go-go bars and young Honduran women forced to work as hostesses are ongoing in federal court.

Hutchins said authorities were trying to determine whether the latest suspected ring was connected to either of the previous cases.

 Dobbs: Radical groups taking control of immigrant movement

By Lou Dobbs
CNN

NEW YORK (CNN) -- We all awoke to headlines in our nation's most important newspapers reminding us that this is "A Day Without Immigrants." Not illegal immigrants, mind you, but immigrants.

USA Today headlined today's demonstrations and boycott "On Immigration's Front Lines." The New York Times headlines its story "With Calls for Boycott by Immigrants, Employers Gird for Unknown." The Washington Post and The Los Angeles Times are both calling their coverage "The Immigration Debate."

These major newspapers obviously don't want to disturb their readers with the information that today's demonstrations and boycott are about illegal immigration and amnesty for illegal aliens.

CNN and Fox News are both using a banner calling their coverage "A Day Without Immigrants," while MSNBC is titling its coverage "Immigrant Anger."

Most of the mainstream media has been absolutely co-opted by the open borders and illegal immigration advocates. I'm not opposed to demonstrations and protests of any kind, even by those who are not citizens of this country, because one way or another, demonstrations and protests enrich and invigorate the national debate and raise the public consciousness of truth.

But only one newspaper, to its credit, reported that illegal aliens and their supporters' boycott of the national economy on the First of May is clear evidence that radical elements have seized control of the movement. The Washington Post, alone among national papers, reported that ANSWER (Act Now to Stop War and End Racism) has become an active promoter of the national boycott.

Some illegal immigration and open borders activists in the Hispanic community are deeply concerned about the involvement of the left-wing radical group. But others, like Juan Jose Gutierrez, whom I've interviewed a number of times over the past several months, manages to be both director of Latino Movement USA and a representative of ANSWER.

As Gutierrez told us on my show, "The time has come...where we need to stand up and make a statement. We need to do what the American people did when they pulled away from the British crown. And I am sure that back in those days many people were concerned that was radical action."

Just how significant is the impact of leftists within the illegal immigration movement? It is no accident that they chose May 1 as their day of demonstration and boycott. It is the worldwide day of commemorative demonstrations by various socialist, communist, and even anarchic organizations.

Supporters of the boycott have made no secret of their determination to try to shut down schools, businesses and entire cities. Much of Los Angeles' Seventh Street produce market, which supplies thousands of local restaurants and markets, is closed today. Many meat-packing companies like Cargill and Tyson are also closing many of their plants.

"The meat packers are confirming what we know," says University of Maryland economics professor Peter Morici, "and that is that this large group of illegal aliens in the United States is lowering the wage rate of semiskilled workers, people who are high school dropouts or high school graduates with minimal training."

In fact, a meat-packing job paid $19 an hour in 1980, but today that same job pays closer to $9 an hour, according to the Labor Department. That's entirely consistent with what we've been reporting -- that illegal aliens depress wages for U.S. workers by as much as $200 billion a year in addition to placing a tremendous burden on hospitals, schools and other social services.

Radicalism is not confined to Gutierrez and Latino Movement USA. Ernesto Nevarez of the L.A. Port Collective is promising to shut down the Port of Los Angeles today: "[Transportation and commerce] will come to a grinding halt. ...They are going to put a wall along the border with Mexico. We're going to put a wall between us and the ocean. And those containers ain't going to move."

No matter which flag demonstrators and protesters carry today, their leadership is showing its true colors to all who will see.

Proponents of Spanish Anthem Point to Rice

By PAULINE JELINEK


WASHINGTON -- President Bush wants people to sing the national anthem in English only. Promoters of singing it in Spanish are pointing to comments by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice _ and her department's Web site _ as ammunition for their side of the argument.

There are four Spanish versions on USINFO.State.gov, a multi-language Web site.

"I've heard the national anthem done in rap versions, country versions, classical versions," Rice said Sunday on CBS's "Face the Nation." "The individualization of the American national anthem is quite under way."

The State Department site for some time has offered translations of the U.S. Constitution, pledge of allegiance and other documents in French, Arabic and other foreign languages to help people understand America better.

This is what promoters say they had in mind with the Spanish anthem recording, which has drawn criticism from Internet bloggers.

Weighing in on Bush's side of the argument was Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., who introduced a resolution affirming that the song, pledge allegiance to the flag and other "statements of national unity" should be done in English.

When 'Nuestro Himno,' a Spanish version of the anthem, debuted last week, Bush said "people who want to be a citizen of this country ought to learn English and they ought to learn to sing the national anthem in English."

After Bush rejected the idea, British music producer Adam Kidron said, "We instead view `Nuestro Himno' as a song that affords those immigrants that have not yet learned the English language the opportunity to fully understand the character of 'The Star-Spangled Banner,' the American flag and the ideals of freedom that they represent."

Republicans set sights on aliens' employers

House Republicans called on U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to prosecute businesses shut down yesterday by their illegal alien employees who took the day off to participate in protests of immigration legislation.
    "Too often, we presume that fault lies with the illegal migrant worker, but we need to recognize that the employer broke the law by hiring the illegal alien," wrote Republican Reps. Jack Kingston of Georgia and Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee. "We believe the federal government has an obligation to enforce the nation's immigration laws and must actively investigate any and all instances where it is apparent industries have knowingly and willingly hired those who entered this country illegally."
    In a letter to ICE Assistant Secretary Julie Myers, Mr. Kingston and Mrs. Blackburn noted "the multiple reports in the news media today regarding companies which have been forced to halt operations because large numbers of their employees appear to be in the United States illegally and are participating in the protest rallies."
    "ICE has an obligation to use this public information to enforce immigration laws," they wrote. "We respectfully request that you look into this matter and report back to us on your findings."
    Rep. Tom Tancredo, Colorado Republican, meanwhile, observed that the "Day Without Immigrants" would have been a "boon" for taxpayers if they could have taken the day off from paying all the costs associated with the illegal alien community.
    "The activist protesters are trying to confuse the American public by lumping legal immigrants with illegal aliens," Mr. Tancredo said. "A day without legal immigrants would be a day without almost all Americans. A day without illegal aliens, on the other hand, would be a boon to the American taxpayer."
    He said the government pays out more than $10 billion annually in health care, education and incarceration costs for illegal aliens. He also said the government may be forgoing as much as $35 billion in lost tax revenue to the underground labor market.
    "Americans don't respond well to illegal aliens who demand amnesty. As I've said before, that doesn't play well in Peoria," Mr. Tancredo said. "Every time illegal aliens and their supporters take to the streets, it drives home the point to most Americans that illegal immigration is a problem in their hometowns, and that we urgently need to get control of our borders."
    In the Senate, Republicans introduced a resolution affirming that statements of "national unity" such as the national anthem should be recited or sung in English.
    Sen. Lamar Alexander, Tennessee Republican and author of the resolution, said the protesters' message gets "lost in translation" when the "Star-Spangled Banner" is rewritten in Spanish.
    "Ours is a diverse nation, but diversity is not our greatest accomplishment," he said. "Jerusalem is diverse. The Balkans are diverse. Iraq is diverse. What makes America unique is that we have taken all that magnificent diversity and turned it into one nation."

Vocal foe of amnesty pushes on
By Steve Goldstein


"Cheap labor is not cheap to taxpayers who support illegal aliens," Tom Tancredo was saying. "Comprehensive legislation is a code word for amnesty. Amnesty for illegals is a slap in the face for those who came in legally. ... It tells them they are suckers."

When Tancredo, a Republican congressman from Colorado, talks publicly about immigration, his voice rises and words jam in his mouth - impatient to get out - so passionate is he on the subject.

On Thursday, speaking to the Family Research Council, a conservative advocacy organization, the short, stocky grandson of Italian immigrants managed in 15 minutes to bash President Bush, Citizenship and Immigration Services, churches that "aid and abet" illegals, and anyone else who doesn't share his point of view.

"Our Southern border is a war zone," he said. "Democrats see illegal aliens as a source of voters. Republicans see them as cheap labor."

There isn't anyone who doesn't know where Tom Tancredo stands on immigration.

And that stance, like it or not, has made an otherwise unremarkable former junior high school civics teacher from the Denver suburbs a major player in the immigration debate roiling Congress and the nation.

His supporters, such as spokeswoman Susan Wysoki, of the conservative Federation for American Immigration Reform, say Tancredo is "one of the few congressmen with the guts to stand up on this issue."

Opponents, such as the more liberal National Immigration Forum and National Council of La Raza, insist Tancredo is all talk and little action.

"He talks very loudly, but I'm not sure how effective he is," said Angela Kelley, NIF deputy director. "I know he gets the problem, but he's far off in finding a solution."

Tancredo's first book will be published next month. In Mortal Danger will detail the threat the four-term congressman envisions from granting amnesty to more than 11 million illegal immigrants and failing to adequately protect U.S. borders.

During an interview in his office, Tancredo called Bush a "hypocrite" on the issue of border protection. When the president criticized Minuteman Project activists as "vigilantes," Tancredo praised them as heroes.

"I think the Republican Party needs to be kicked in the butt," he said.

So Tancredo speaks on immigration all over the nation, even visiting the districts of fellow Republicans whom he feels are too soft on the issue.

"The only way I could do it is to go outside this place," he said.

Thomas G. Tancredo, 60, grew up on the north side of Denver. His interest in immigration developed when Colorado passed the nation's first bilingual-education law while he was teaching civics.

"It was obvious we were talking about a political process," he said, "not an educational one."

He campaigned for the state House in 1976 as a reformer, distributing brochures with a family spaghetti recipe on one side and a "good government" recipe on the other. Every year as a state legislator, he tried to repeal the bilingual law.

Beginning in 1981, Tancredo served as regional representative for the U.S. Department of Education and then headed the Independence Institute, a libertarian think tank in Golden, Colo.

Tancredo ran for the U.S. House in 1998 supported by the National Rifle Association and National Right to Life, among other groups. He pledged to serve only three terms but changed his mind after deciding his national platform on the immigration debate was too important to give up.

He founded an Immigration Reform Caucus in May 1999 with 16 members that has since grown to more than 90.

Nothing is wrong with immigration, he says, as long as it is followed by assimilation.

He has suggested bombing Mecca if Islamists attack the U.S. with nuclear weapons. He vehemently opposed the original crescent-shaped design of the Flight 93 memorial in Shanksville, Pa., "because the crescent's prominent use as a symbol is Islam - and the fact that the hijackers were radical Islamists."

The design has since been altered to the shape of a circular bowl.

In his free time, Tancredo likes to hunt. A few months ago, on an outing with a local deputy sheriff near Texas' border with Mexico, the congressman said he used a .30-30 rifle from long distance to shoot a coyote.

A four-legged one, he quickly added, not the two-legged smugglers.

"The sheriff sent me the ears," Tancredo beamed.

Tancredo in His Own Words

"We send troops thousands of miles away to fight terrorists, but we refuse to put them on our own border to keep them out."

"I believe that what we are fighting here is not just a small group of people who have hijacked a religion, but it

is a civilization bent on destroying ours."

"If Western civilization succumbs to the siren song of multiculturalism, I believe we're finished."

"I just think these things [House caucuses for blacks, Hispanics and Asian Americans] separate us instead of bringing us together. What If we had a white caucus?"

"Well, what if you said something like, if this happens in the United States and we determine that it is the result of extremist, fundamentalist Muslims, you know, you could take out their holy sites."(July 2005, on a Florida talk radio show when asked how the United States could respond to a nuclear attack by terrorists.)

Anti-illegals protesters to 'rumble' in Crawford
Event intended to 'wake up' America, ask Bush to enforce immigration laws



Hoping to "wake up" Americans to the crisis of illegal immigration, opponents of President Bush's reform plan will gather in Crawford, Texas, Saturday in an event dubbed "Rumble at the Ranch."

Bush's ranch, the location of many anti-war protests, is located outside Crawford.

The event is being sponsored by the Texas Minutemen and Latino Americans for Immigration Reform, according to the website A Reckoning.

Lou Ann Anderson, executive producer of the Lynn Woolley radio show, is helping to organize the rally and hopes other talk-radio hosts will join in.

"We want hosts all over the country, from local radio stations to the biggest stars of syndication to the faces we see each night on cable TV to come and be a part of the Rumble," said Anderson in a statement. "Talk radio and TV has been heroic on this issue. Without the daily updates from talk show hosts, the American public would be getting only one side of this issue."

Added Anderson: "Many hosts who support Bush administration policies openly question the president's handling of immigration. Terry Anderson is a host on KRLA in Los Angeles who covers immigration on a regular basis. Terry will bring his message to the Rumble: 'If you're not mad, you're not paying attention.'"

Also scheduled to speak in Crawford is Jim Gilchrist, the founder of the Minutemen border patrol group who is considering a run for president in 2008 representing the Constitution Party.

The organizers' site states the rally, scheduled for 1 p.m. Saturday next to the Crawford Community Service Center, is seen "as a means of waking the American people, Congress and the media to the willful disregard for immigration law by this president and his Cabinet."

Besides hearing from leaders in the immigration-reform movement, attendees will listen to speeches from political candidates who are in favor of tougher border enforcement and opposed to Bush's guest-worker program and proposal to give illegal aliens the chance to become citizens.

Immigrants rally unlikely to break Senate impasse

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A nationwide boycott by Hispanic groups and others seeking rights for illegal immigrants was unlikely to help break a U.S. Senate impasse on an overhaul of immigration laws, Republican lawmakers said on Tuesday.

Hundreds of thousands of immigrants and their supporters walked off their jobs and held protests around the country on Monday in a display of economic might aimed at persuading Congress to pass a law giving them a chance of citizenship.

"It didn't really affect what goes on the floor of the Senate," said Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, a Tennessee Republican.

Sen. John Cornyn, a Texas Republican who opposes a bipartisan Senate bill that would give millions of illegal immigrants a chance to earn U.S. citizenship, said he doubted the protests would have much impact.

"If anything, I think it may have alienated some people," he said.

That assessment reflected commentary on Tuesday in many newspaper editorials, which said the boycott was unlikely to settle the debate.

But Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid of Nevada said the large, peaceful rallies had a powerful impact and vowed to push for the bipartisan Senate bill.

"I'm not going to roll over," Reid told reporters. "I can't, this is too important an issue."

In an effort to break an impasse over possible amendments that stalled the Senate bill last month, Reid offered to limit the number of amendments to 10 for each party.

But Frist did not accept that and told reporters talks would continue in an effort to bring the bill up for further Senate consideration by the end of the month.

Reid cast doubt on its prospects during this congressional election year.

"My best assessment is they don't want a bill," Reid said about majority Republicans.

Democrats fear Republicans will try to water down the bill through the amendment process.

Reid is also seeking assurances that the Senate would hold its position in eventual negotiations with the U.S. House of Representatives, which has already passed a bill that criminalizes illegal presence in the United States.

The House bill would make illegal presence in the United States a felony instead of a civil offense and calls for construction of a fence along parts of the U.S. border with Mexico. Any Senate bill would have to be merged with the House measure.

The Senate bill includes border security and enforcement measures. It also would create a guest worker program backed by President George W. Bush and would give some of the estimated 11.5 million to 12 million illegal immigrants living in the United States a chance to earn citizenship. They would have to pay a fine, pay back taxes, show an understanding of English and meet other requirements.

Suit: L.A. police cower to illegals
Cops accused of shirking responsibility to protect citizens by not asking status

The Los Angeles Police Department is being sued in connection with its policy prohibiting officers from inquiring about an individual's immigration status, and reportedly restricts them from cooperating with federal immigration officials.

The action has been filed by the public-interest group Judicial Watch, and asks the court to prohibit the LAPD from expending taxpayer funds to enforce and maintain "Special Order 40," claiming it violates both California and federal laws and puts American citizens at risk.

"Special Order 40 is illegal and dangerous," said the group's president Tom Fitton. "It constrains police officers from enforcing the law and places everyone at risk from criminal illegal aliens."

Initiated in 1979 by former L.A. Police Chief Daryl Gates, the measure reads, in part, "Officers shall not initiate police action with the objective of discovering the alien status of a person. Officers shall not arrest nor book persons for violation of Title 8, Section 1325 of the United States Immigration Code (Illegal Entry)."

According to a Board of Police Commissioners' report in February 2001, in practice, the policies and procedures also "preclude officers from ... notifying the [federal immigration officials] about a person's undocumented status unless the person has been arrested."

The Judicial Watch complaint states: "Special Order 40 and the policies, procedures, and practices arising thereunder ... are unlawful and void, and the LAPD must be prohibited from expending any further taxpayer funds ... to enforce, maintain, or otherwise carry out in any manner the provisions of Special Order 40."

In 1996, Congress enacted legislation which states, " ... a federal, state, or local government entity or official may not prohibit, or in any way restrict, any government entity or official from sending to, or receiving from, the Immigration and Naturalization Service (now Immigration and Customs Enforcement) information regarding the citizenship or immigration status, lawful or unlawful, of any individual."

California law also mandates Los Angeles Police officers enforce immigration laws and work with federal immigration officials.

In its complaint, Judicial Watch cites a New York Times article published in late 2004 concerning an illegal alien who went on a rampage in Hollywood, Calif., mugging three people, burglarizing two apartments and attempting to rape a woman in front of her five-year-old daughter.

The unlawful immigrant had previously been deported four years earlier for robbery, drugs and burglary, but had made his way back into the U.S.

"Although he had been stopped twice for traffic violations," the Times reported, "the police were prohibited from reporting him to immigration authorities."

Labor Site Backlash Felt at Polls In Herndon
Three Who Supported Immigrant Center Ousted

Backlash! Incumbents booted over illegals issue
Voters unseat mayor, council members who supported day-labor center

Herndon voters yesterday unseated the mayor and two Town Council members who supported a bitterly debated day-labor center for immigrant workers in a contest that emerged as a mini-referendum on the turbulent national issue of illegal immigration.

Residents replaced the incumbents with challengers who immediately called for significant changes at the center. Some want to bar public funds from being spent on the facility or restrict it to workers living in the country legally. Others want it moved to an industrial site away from the residential neighborhood where it is located.

The labor center forced the western Fairfax County town into the national spotlight last summer as the immigration debate grew deeply contentious. Even though fewer than 3,000 people voted yesterday, advocates on both sides of the issue looked at the Herndon election as a test of public sentiment. Outside groups such as the Minuteman Project, which opposes illegal immigration, intervened in the debate, and Judicial Watch, a conservative legal group, is suing the town over the establishment of the center.

The council voted 5 to 2 last August to establish the center, but yesterday's vote created an apparent 6 to 1 majority in opposition. Steve J. DeBenedittis, 38, a health club operator and political newcomer, defeated Mayor Michael L. O'Reilly with 52 percent of the vote. Council members Carol A. Bruce and Steven D. Mitchell, who voted for the center, also were turned out of office. Jorge Rochac, a Salvadoran businessman who supported the center and was seeking to become the town's first Hispanic council member, also was defeated.

Elected to the council were challengers William B. Tirrell, Charlie D. Waddell, Connie Haines Hutchinson and David A. Kirby, all opponents of the facility, which was created to help immigrants connect with employers each day.

Two incumbents were reelected. Dennis D. Husch, who was one of the two council members to vote against the center, received more votes than any of the eight other council candidates. J. Harlon Reece was the lone supporter who was reelected. He received the fewest number of votes among the six winners.

Twenty-six percent of the town's 10,203 registered voters came to the polls, up from 20 percent when O'Reilly was elected two years ago, according to Fairfax County figures.

DeBenedittis, the son of a popular former high school art teacher in Herndon, said his victory was the product of intensive door-to-door campaigning and voters' deep discontent over how the labor center issue was handled by the mayor and council in the town of 23,000 residents.

"They didn't like the way the debate went down, and there was the feeling that they were not heard," he said.

DeBenedittis frequently skirted specifics on the labor center issue during the campaign, but he said in at least one candidate questionnaire that the facility on Sterling Road should be limited to legal immigrants.

A disappointed O'Reilly said last night that he was proud of the way he and the council handled the controversy. He said the center remains a quantum improvement over the chaotic ad hoc site in a 7-Eleven parking lot that had become a community eyesore.

"I'm really proud of what I stood for, and proud of what I did," O'Reilly said. "I think there was a lot of misinformation that was out there. There may be a lot more resentment and hatred out there than I anticipated."

Judith M. Markbein, 59, a second grade teacher, said she voted the incumbents out because "when we put money into a day-labor site, we are putting money into people who are illegal. I'm not trying to be prejudiced, but when people are given rights that they haven't earned, it makes me angry."

The challengers attributed their victories not to hatred, but to the council's falling out of touch with voters.

"It's a new direction for Herndon," said Waddell, a systems engineer. "We've got a new slate. We've got a new council. We've got a new mayor. We are going to try to be responsive to the people. That was lost on the council."

Waddell said he favors moving the center to a commercial area and will try to tap private funds for its operation. It now operates in part on a grant from Fairfax County.

"You've got day laborers cutting between yards to get to the center," he said. "I've talked to residents who said they have been awakened at 6 in the morning by laborers sitting on their lawn furniture in the back yard because they are waiting for the center to open. That's not good for the neighborhood."

Hutchinson, who was on the council previously, said the panel ignored the feelings of the community. "I do think the voters have spoken," she said. "I don't know where we go from here."

The center has another year to go on a conditional use permit, and the new council can use that time to seek alternatives, she said. Hutchinson said she also favors moving the center to another area.

Former mayor Richard C. Thoesen, a backer of the center, said he attributed the results to voter frustration over the town's burgeoning immigrant population, which has led to serious residential crowding. He added that Monday's nationwide demonstrations organized by immigrants' rights groups constituted "bad timing" that may have added to the backlash.

He cautioned the new mayor and council to do what they can to reunite the town. "The fallout for Herndon could be devastating if they don't handle this well," he said.

Last year, the Minuteman group, a chapter of an Arizona-based national organization that fights illegal immigration, began appearing at the 7-Eleven. They photographed employers and workers and turned over the evidence to state agencies as well as the Internal Revenue Service.

The Minutemen also have shown up at the new day-labor site, leading to confrontations between supporters and opponents. George Taplin, leader of the local Minuteman group, said the goal is to rid Herndon of illegal immigrants.

Last summer, Herndon Town Hall was forced to unplug its phone lines after listeners of a talk show on WMAL (630 AM) flooded the switchboard with what officials said were hate calls against the day-labor site.

Town officials say it has operated smoothly since its contentious launch in December. With milder spring weather, work has become more plentiful. Bill Threlkeld of Project Hope and Harmony, which operates the center for Reston Interfaith Inc., a nonprofit group that has received a grant from Fairfax County, said recently that about half of the 100 or so workers who come out in the morning find employment.

Reece said the national debate took over a local dispute. "The immigration issue has become such an issue nationally that it affected the local election," he said.

Reece said he could favor moving the center, but he said it will be difficult: "I just don't want to see it closed. I don't want us to go back to the unregulated, chaotic situation like we had before."

Sheriff to Start Posse Patrols to Curb Illegal Immigration Flow

(CBS 5 NEWS) - Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio announced that approximately 100 volunteer posse and Sheriff's Deputies will soon begin randomly patrolling the desert areas and main roadways in southwest Maricopa County as a part of an operation to curb the flow of illegal immigrants entering the county.
 
Arpaio made the announced just as 11 more illegal immigrants were being booked in jail after a Ford Windstar with California plates and 16 people packed inside was stopped by a Sheriff's deputy early Tuesday morning on a traffic violation near Gila Bend.
 
Despite the growing controversy about illegal aliens nationwide, the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office remains the only Arizona law enforcement agency willing to enforce a new state anti-smuggling law.
 
"There are so many illegals trying to make it into the county that it's overwhelming my deputies, so I have called on members of my 3000 member volunteer posse to assist," says Sheriff Arpaio.  "It's not only illegals we find and arrest out there, we've also made some recent huge drug seizures involving illegal aliens including nearly 100 pounds of methamphetamine and approximately three pounds of heroin."
 
Posse man Andrew Ramsammy, who was part of Tuesday's arrest team, says that he believes he represents many of his peers when he says that the posse is anxious to be a part of the Sheriff's solution to the immigration problem.
 
"As a group of law abiding people, we are fed up with the number of people who come into this county illegally.  We're tired of the drugs that some of them bring to sell to our young people and we're ready and willing to assist the Sheriff's deputies in the fight against illegal immigration," says Ramsammy.
 
Sheriff Arpaio says Tuesday's arrests include two coyotes, one of whom may be charged with a far more serious offense - endangerment.
 
Virgilio Parra Sabori may face a class 6 felony charge if it is determined that he recklessly left one of his customers to die in the desert.
 
That customer who may have paid as much as $1100 to gain entrance into the country, was a 24-year-old Mexican male found near death by deputies who combed the desert earlier today after being told by other people in the vehicle that one man was left behind. That young man was found lying in the sun on the desert floor and is currently in serious condition in a west valley hospital.
 
Arpaio says today his deputies so far have made seven anti smuggling cases in the last few weeks alone and that 120 illegals have been arrested and jailed.
 
Arpaio houses 10,000 prisoners in his jails, including almost 2000 in a tent city he erected in 1993. Tent City is being expanded to hold an anticipated increase in of inmates being incarcerated in the Maricopa County jails.

'Minuteman' Border Volunteers Take 12-City Trek



LOS ANGELES -- The Minuteman Project civilian border patrol group planned to kick off a 12-city tour Wednesday to build support for its get-tough border stance in the wake of pro-immigant rallies around the country.

Organizers said they will use the caravan, which is scheduled to finish on Capitol Hill, to mobilize voters and recruit members. The group is made up of volunteers who patrol the border and strongly oppose illegal immigration.

The group hopes to counter the impact made by the more than 1 million illegal immigrants and their supporters who took to the nation's streets earlier this week. Project officials acknowledged, however, that they would have a hard time mustering the same kind of numbers for a rally of their own. Demonstrations by the Minuteman Project on Monday were scattered and small, often numbering fewer than 100 people per city.

"Our power is not putting a million people on the street, our power is putting 10 million people at the voting box," said Stephen Eichler, the group's executive director. "Their voice is accompanied by a lot of bodies, but our voice is accompanied by even more bodies who aren't going to go out in the street."

The caravan is scheduled to leave from Los Angeles and arrive on Capitol Hill for a May 12 rally as senators rush to pass an immigration reform bill before a Memorial Day deadline set by Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn.

Federal lawmakers must then reconcile the Senate bill - which will likely include a guest worker program and a potential path to citizenship for 11 million illegal immigrants - with a House bill that would criminalize them.

The caravan will include about 100 staff members and supporters, said Eichler. It will stop in President Bush's vacation haven of Crawford, Texas, as well as in Phoenix, Ariz.; Albuquerque, N.M.; Abilene, Texas; Little Rock, Ark.; Memphis and Nashville, Tenn.; Montgomery, Ala.; Atlanta; and Richmond, Va.

One supporter, Penny Magnotto of Upland, Calif., said she and a friend were planning to follow the caravan in their RV and visit seven additional states on their return to recruit more members.

"If one in 100 people that we meet up with kind of get it and see that we're nice family people I will be thrilled," said Magnotto, founder of the Minuteman spin-off Minutewomen on the Road.

Americans fight back against illegals influx
Fed-up citizens use Yankee ingenuity to report employers, promote 'legals'

With the federal government having a perceived do-nothing attitude to stop the ongoing invasion of illegal aliens into the U.S., fed-up Americans are logging on to the Internet to fight their own battle.

A number of websites have popped up in recent days to not only help authorities identify and locate the unlawful workers, but also expose the employers who provide them jobs and help consumers patronize businesses that hire only legal citizens.

Among the newest is HireUSfirst.com, which looks to provide a national database with an easy-to-use map helping consumers find companies whose employees are legal.

"Rather than outing businesses that hire illegals, we want to provide a listing of businesses that refuse to hire illegals, and encourage like minded consumers to patronize those businesses rather than spend their money at places that put their bottom line before the future of our country," founder Brett Gosch of Thornton, Colo., told WorldNetDaily.

"We ... understand that barring a [weapon of mass destruction] coming across one of our borders and vaporizing a city, our state and federal governments will never do anything serious about illegal immigration or border control. So the burden of doing something meaningful about it rests on the shoulders of common Americans," he writes on the site.

Another site is WeHireAliens.com, an online Hall of Shame whose stated purpose is to expose "alleged" employers of illegal aliens.

"The biggest incentive for illegal aliens to come to the United States is to find work," the site notes. "If there are no employers willing to hire the illegal aliens, then the flood of illegal aliens will subside."

WeHireAliens currently has more than 1,300 employers from at least 43 states on its list.

The page also encourages consumers not to patronize the companies featured, and provides prewritten letters to let businesses know their traffic will suffer directly as a result of their use of unlawful workers.

For those interested in making sure authorities are kept in the loop, there's ReportIllegals.com, which, for $10, "provides a simple, fast, and anonymous way to report illegal aliens and illegal employers to the appropriate U.S. government agencies. It takes only a few minutes to file a report with our service, whereas it would typically take you several hours on your own to find the proper agency and complete and submit a report."

IllegalAliens.us is a clearinghouse of information on the subject, and welcomes online visitors with the message, "Calling an illegal alien an undocumented immigrant is like calling a burglar an uninvited house guest."

It even provides links to sites that sell merchandise on the heated subject. Among the featured items are $18 T-shirts with messages such as "Secure Our Borders" and "Here Legally" on a map of the United States.

"Terrific for the grocery store or protest line," the ad for the "Here Legally" shirt states. "You will be surprised at the overwhelmingly positive comments you'll receive."

Bill: Employ illegals, repay state grants
Pennsylvania legislation recovers taxpayer money spent to hire undocumented workers



Lawmakers: Pa. dollars won't pay for illegal immigrants' work
MARC LEVY
Associated Press

HARRISBURG, Pa. - The Legislature on Wednesday unanimously approved legislation that would force local governments, nonprofit groups and businesses to repay state grants if any of the money is used to employ illegal immigrants.

The legislation also raises the possibility that the state could levy a higher interest rate on any of its loans that paid for work by illegal immigrants.

The penalties hinge on whether recipients of the money knew, or should have known, that they or their contractors were employing an illegal immigrant as part of a project that received state money.

The bill passed both chambers without debate or fanfare, and comes at a time when federal lawmakers are considering major changes to the nation's immigration laws.

A spokeswoman for Gov. Ed Rendell said the Democrat was reviewing the legislation and would not say whether he plans to sign it.

The state bill was introduced in December by Rep. Bob Allen, R-Schuylkill, less than a month after federal immigration authorities raided a Wal-Mart distribution center under construction near Pottsville, about 80 miles northwest of Philadelphia.

"When the commonwealth invests tax dollars in community economic development projects, one of the primary benefits is that it creates good job opportunities for area workers," Allen said in a statement. "The use of illegal labor undermines that benefit."

Only future grants and loans would be affected by the measure.

All told, the legislation could apply to more than $1 billion in annual state grants and loans. The state government regularly spends hundreds of millions of dollars a year on loans and grants to subsidize major civic projects or to help businesses expand.

In addition, the Rendell administration has begun major projects to finance environmental cleanups, improve public water and sewerage, and attract businesses.

Local government agencies, nonprofit development groups and businesses typically apply for the money for a specific project and hire contractors to work on it.

The legislation leaves an out for recipients of the money who notify federal authorities of a suspected violation.

Fewer undocumented patients, funds good news for Copper Queen hospital


BISBEE — Three or four years ago, Jim Dickson, CEO of Bisbee’s Copper Queen Community Hospital, was not feeling very upbeat.

He had had to cut back on employees and hours, shutter his skilled nursing facility and close the hospital’s maternity ward. The reductions, he says, were largely due to a massive influx of patients from Mexico — illegal immigrants or residents of nearby Naco, Sonora — who could not pay for services.

Today, however, things are looking brighter for the hospital and its CEO. Federal funds that provide partial compensation for treating undocumented immigrants have finally started to come in. And even better, Dickson says, the number of undocumented patients at the hospital has gone into rapid decline.

“It might be the increased number of Border Patrol agents in the area or it might be the notoriety of the Minutemen,” he said. “But there are just not as many people crossing from Mexico (into the Bisbee area).”

“Whoever is doing it, they are doing a good job because it has meant financial viability for us.”

As evidence, he points to numbers from March and April — traditionally two of the busiest months for undocumented patients. In the past, these were months when the hospital would write off as much as $30,000 in uncompensated losses. But Dickson says the amount has now dropped to less than $7,000.

Pausing to knock on wood, Dickson says he has not been called in at night in the past two years — a common occurrence in years past.

Statistics from the U.S. Border Patrol’s Tucson Sector also support Dickson’s assertion that local illegal crossings are declining. The agency reported 10,230 apprehensions of undocumented immigrants in Cochise County in March 2006, less than 50 percent of the 21,232 recorded in March 2005.

And the good news for the Copper Queen Memorial Hospital is that not only has undocumented patient flow declined, but federal funds are now coming in to help offset the cost of their treatment.

Section 1011, a recently implemented measure of the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA), provides $250 million per year for fiscal years 2005-08 to compensate physicians and hospitals for emergency health care given to undocumented immigrants. Reimbursement is partial, and so while the Copper Queen billed $6,500 in Section 1011 costs for the third quarter of 2005, the hospital received a check for only $2,366.

In all, Arizona’s hospitals received nearly $3.3 million in Section 1011 payments for the third quarter of 2005. The Sierra Vista Regional Health Center received $29,125 while Community Health Care of Douglas got $77,064.

While any level of federal contribution is good news for the Copper Queen, the arrival of the funds has been bittersweet for Dickson, since they come after his years of greatest loss — such as 2004, when he reported deficits of $450,000.

Perhaps the most important benefit of the reimbursement program, he says, is that it has established an accounting system that allows hospitals like his to accurately measure the number and impact of undocumented patients.

Due to sparse and overloaded health care facilities in nearby Naco, Sonora, the Copper Queen Community Hospital — especially its emergency room — has long been a magnet for Mexican citizens who come to the U.S. legally on shopping and tourist visas.

Dickson explained that the hospital does not turn away Mexican patients, documented or otherwise. Federal law requires emergency rooms to treat patients regardless of their ability to pay, and, furthermore, the hospital is concerned that people carrying transmittable diseases like antibiotic-resistant TB and staph infections might return to their border communities untreated.

In an effort to help Naco residents receive attention at emergency rooms in the larger Sonoran cities of Agua Prieta and Cananea, the Copper Queen Community Hospital donated an ambulance to the city.

But while Dickson realizes that his facility will always have some level of demand from the border, he is now finding that it can be managed. “(Patient flow) is not going to stop,” he said.

Illegal aliens threaten
U.S. medical system

Docs journal reports hospitals being closed, previously vanquished diseases being spread


Cristobal Silverio emigrated illegally from Mexico to Stockton, Calif., in 1997 to work as a fruit picker.

He brought with him his wife, Felipa, and three children, 19, 12 and 8 – all illegals. When Felipa gave birth to her fourth child, daughter Flor, the family had what is referred to as an "anchor baby" – an American citizen by birth who provided the entire Silverio clan a ticket to remain in the U.S. permanently

But Flor was born premature, spent three months in the neonatal incubator and cost the San Joaquin Hospital more than $300,000. Meanwhile, oldest daughter Lourdes married an illegal alien gave birth to a daughter, too. Her name is Esmeralda. And Felipa had yet another child, Cristian.

The two Silverio anchor babies generate $1,000 per month in public welfare funding for the family. Flor gets $600 a month for asthma. Healthy Cristian gets $400. While the Silverios earned $18,000 last year picking fruit, they picked up another $12,000 for their two "anchor babies."

While President Bush says the U.S. needs more "cheap labor" from south of the border to do jobs Americans aren't willing to do, the case of the Silverios shows there are indeed uncalculated costs involved in the importation of such labor – public support and uninsured medical costs.

In fact, the increasing number of illegal aliens coming into the United States is forcing the closure of hospitals, spreading previously vanquished diseases and threatening to destroy America's prized health-care system, says a report in the spring issue of the Journal of American Physicians and Surgeons.

"The influx of illegal aliens has serious hidden medical consequences," writes Madeleine Pelner Cosman, author of the report. "We judge reality primarily by what we see. But what we do not see can be more dangerous, more expensive, and more deadly than what is seen."

According to her study, 84 California hospitals are closing their doors as a direct result of the rising number of illegal aliens and their non-reimbursed tax on the system.

"Anchor babies," the author writes, "born to illegal aliens instantly qualify as citizens for welfare benefits and have caused enormous rises in Medicaid costs and stipends under Supplemental Security Income and Disability Income."

In addition, the report says, "many illegal aliens harbor fatal diseases that American medicine fought and vanquished long ago, such as drug-resistant tuberculosis, malaria, leprosy, plague, polio, dengue, and Chagas disease."

While politicians often mention there are 43 million without health insurance in this country, the report estimates that at least 25 percent of those are illegal immigrants. The figure could be as high as 50 percent.

Not being insured does not mean they don't get medical care.

Under the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act of 1985, hospitals are obligated to treat the uninsured without reimbursement.

"Government imposes viciously stiff fines and penalties on any physician and any hospital refusing to treat any patient that a zealous prosecutor deems an emergency patient, even though the hospital or physician screened and declared the patient's illness or injury non-emergency," says the report. "But government pays neither hospital nor physician for treatments. In addition to the fiscal attack on medical facilities and personnel, EMTALA is a handy truncheon with which to pummel politically unpopular physicians by falsely accusing them of violating EMTALA."

According to the report, between 1993 and 2003, 60 California hospitals closed because half their services became unpaid. Another 24 California hospitals verge on closure, the author writes.

"American hospitals welcome 'anchor babies,'" says the report. "Illegal alien women come to the hospital in labor and drop their little anchors, each of whom pulls its illegal alien mother, father, and siblings into permanent residency simply by being born within our borders. Anchor babies are citizens, and instantly qualify for public welfare aid: Between 300,000 and 350,000 anchor babies annually become citizens because of the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution: "All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and the State wherein they reside."

Among the organizations directing illegal aliens into America's medical systems, according to the report, are the Ford Foundation-funded Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund, the National Immigration Law Center, the American Immigration Lawyers Association, the American Bar Association's Commission on Immigration Policy, Practice, and Pro Bono, the Immigrant Legal Resource Center, the National Council of La Raza, George Soros's Open Society Institute, the Migration Policy Institute, the National Network for Immigration and Refugee Rights and the Southern Poverty Law Center.

Because drug addiction and alcoholism are classified as diseases and disabilities, the fiscal toll on the health-care system rises.

When Linda Torres was arrested in Bakersfield, Calif., with about $8,500 in small bills in a sack, the police originally thought it was stolen money, explained the report. It was her Social Security lump sum for her disability -- heroin addiction.

"Today, legal immigrants must demonstrate that they are free of communicable diseases and drug addiction to qualify for lawful permanent residency green cards," writes Cosman, a medical lawyer, who formerly taught medical students at the City University of New York. "Illegal aliens simply cross our borders medically unexamined, hiding in their bodies any number of communicable diseases."

Many illegals entering this country have tuberculosis, according to the report.

"That disease had largely disappeared from America, thanks to excellent hygiene and powerful modern drugs such as isoniazid and rifampin," says the report. "TB's swift, deadly return now is lethal for about 60 percent of those infected because of new Multi-Drug Resistant Tuberculosis. Until recently MDR-TB was endemic to Mexico. This Mycobacterium tuberculosis is resistant to at least two major anti-tubercular drugs. Ordinary TB usually is cured in six months with four drugs that cost about $2,000. MDR-TB takes 24 months with many expensive drugs that cost around $250,000 with toxic side effects. Each illegal with MDR-TB coughs and infects 10 to 30 people, who will not show symptoms immediately. Latent disease explodes later.

TB was virtually absent in Virginia until in 2002, when it spiked a 17 percent increase, but Prince William County, just south of Washington, D.C., had a much larger rise of 188 percent. Public health officials blamed immigrants. In 2001 the Indiana School of Medicine studied an outbreak of MDR-TB, and traced it to Mexican illegal aliens. The Queens, New York, health department attributed 81 percent of new TB cases in 2001 to immigrants. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ascribed 42 percent of all new TB cases to 'foreign born' people who have up to eight times higher incidences apparently, 66 percent of all TB cases coming to America originate in Mexico, the Philippines and Vietnam."

Other health threats from illegals include, according to the report:

    * Chagas disease, also called American trypanosomiasis or "kissing bug disease," is transmitted by the reduviid bug, which prefers to bite the lips and face. The protozoan parasite that it carries, Trypanosoma cruzi, infects 18 million people annually in Latin America and causes 50,000 deaths. The disease also infiltrates America's blood supply. Chagas affects blood transfusions and transplanted organs. No cure exists. Hundreds of blood recipients may be silently infected.
    * Leprosy, also known as Hansen's disease, was so rare in America that in 40 years only 900 people were afflicted. Suddenly, in the past three years America has more than 7,000 cases of leprosy. Leprosy now is endemic to northeastern states because illegal aliens and other immigrants brought leprosy from India, Brazil, the Caribbean and Mexico.
    * Dengue fever is exceptionally rare in America, though common in Ecuador, Peru, Vietnam, Thailand, Bangladesh, Malaysia and Mexico. Recently, according to the report, there was a virulent outbreak of dengue fever in Webb County, Texas, which borders Mexico. Though dengue is usually not a fatal disease, dengue hemorrhagic fever routinely kills.
    * Polio was eradicated from America, but now reappears in illegal immigrants as do intestinal parasites, says the report.
    * Malaria was obliterated, but now is re-emerging in Texas.

The Journal of American Physicians and Surgeons report includes a strong prescription for protecting the health of Americans:

    * Closing America's borders with fences, high-tech security devices and troops.
    * Rescinding the U.S. citizenship of "anchor babies."
    * Punishing the aiding and abetting of illegal aliens as a crime.
    * An end to amnesty programs.

LA Businesses: Monday's Immigrant Boycott had Small Effect

Monday's boycott of businesses by Hispanic activists produced a ripple in the economy of one immigrant-rich city, according to a study in Los Angeles.

In cities around the United States, hundreds of thousands of people rallied Monday to demand rights for the millions who are in the United States illegally.  It was billed by its organizers as a day without immigrants, and many took the day off work and school.  Jack Kyser, chief economist for the Los Angeles Economic Development Corporation, says the walkout cost Los Angeles more than $52 million.

"And this represents lost wages by the demonstrators, because a lot of the people were told 'you can take the day off, but you won't get paid.'  And then you had the independent truckers at the ports.  They did not work either shift on Monday," he said.

He says the Los Angeles school district also lost money, because some 70,000 students failed to come to class, and schools are paid by the state based on daily attendance.  Many businesses were also closed along the protest routes, where shops and offices were not accessible.

The economist says immigrants, many of whom are in the United States illegally, are an important part of the local economy.

"You have a labor force in LA County of about five million people," he added.  "If you use some standard metrics that you get, say, from the Pew Hispanic Center, you would come up with maybe 244,000 of these people would be undocumented and that's a significant labor force."

Still, the analyst says, the boycott was a not major disruption to the local economy.

"You can say it's a hiccup, because the overall economy is a $1.2 billion a day affair," he explained.

He says the greatest impact was on Latino-owned businesses.

As many as 12 million people may be in the United States illegally, and more than seven million may be part of the U.S. workforce.  One New York analyst said the main impact of Monday's demonstration was to highlight the role of immigrants in the U.S. economy.

Not all who joined the demonstrations supported the boycott, and some worry it could produce a backlash among those who are calling for stricter border controls.  The Latino mayor of Los Angeles urged people to stay at school or work and join the rallies and demonstrations in their free time late in the day.

Economist Jack Kyser says most business owners want a humane solution to the illegal worker-question, but worry that employers could be required to enforce immigration law after Congress finally settles the issue.

Bad penny turns up in county clink


An city man wound up in jail last week after police discovered he was an illegal alien who had already been deported once.

South Londonderry Township police responded to a single-vehicle accident on Mt. Wilson Road north of Harvest Road at 9:01 p.m. Thursday and discovered the driver, identified by a California driver’s license as Heriberto Morales, was drunk

The driver was taken to the Hershey Medical Center for treatment of minor injuries, police said. While he was there, police did a computer search on him and found that the identification he had produced was fake.

The driver was actually Heriberto Morales Guevara, 37, an illegal immigrant from Mexico who had been previously been deported, police said.

Upon his release from the hospital, Guevara was arrested and charged with DUI and tampering with public records, police said. He was placed in county prison with bail set at $50,000.

The U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service has indicated he faces deportation again

The Other Immigration Battle

Washington, D.C. - --Forbes

Immigrants and their supporters have filled the streets in past weeks, to express their dismay over proposed immigration laws in Congress. But a little-known case before the Supreme Court could also affect the millions of undocumented workers in the United States -- and the businesses that employ them.

When undocumented immigrants are underpaid or mistreated, they generally don't sue because they are afraid of deportation. In the last five years, however, documented workers may have found a way around that problem.

Legally employed workers are using the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), a law originally aimed at organized crime, to fight back against their employers. If the Supreme Court rules that RICO is a valid avenue for redress in these cases, businesses should take notice.

Enacted in 1970, RICO was originally designed to help the government eliminate organized crime. In 1996, however, a little-noticed amendment to the RICO Act opened the civil-action door for parties concerned about foreign labor and frustrated by the U.S. government’s inefficient enforcement of its immigration laws.

The case now at the Supreme Court began when former and current hourly employees of Mohawk Industries (nyse: MHK - news - people ), one of the nation’s largest carpet and rug manufacturers, filed a civil RICO claim in a class-action lawsuit, alleging that Mohawk drove down wages by conspiring with recruiters and temporary agencies to recruit illegal aliens along the Mexican/U.S. border.

The workers alleged that Mohawk, in cooperation with recruiters, encouraged and aided illegal aliens to move to Northern Georgia, where Mohawk hired them, knowing that they did not have authorization to work in the United States.

But Mohawk says RICO shouldn't apply to its labor practices. Why? For a company to be found liable for RICO violations, there must be an "enterprise" distinct from the operations of the company. Originally, enterprise was commonly read as "Mafia family." In some cases, however, courts have found that a group of companies working together for a common purpose can also constitute an "enterprise" under RICO.

Mohawk filed a motion to dismiss, arguing that the complaint failed to allege the existence of an enterprise. The federal district court denied the motion, and the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the denial.

Mohawk is not the first case of this kind, but it's the first to be taken up by the Supreme Court. The court agreed to hear the case partly to resolve conflicting rulings in the lower courts. In the last five years, more and more plaintiffs have sought to use civil RICO claims against companies allegedly hiring undocumented workers. Such claims have been brought in the Second, Ninth, Sixth, Seventh and Eleventh Circuits, but judges have split on the issue of whether RICO can be used to bring immigration claims.

In one recent case, Mendoza v. Zirkle Fruit Co., agricultural workers in Washington state's fruit industry filed a civil RICO suit, alleging that their employer had conspired with recruiters to hire illegal workers and depress wages.

Although the district court initially dismissed the case based on lack of standing, the Ninth Circuit remanded it, finding a sufficient connection between the defendants' conduct and the employees' damages to support a RICO claim. In January 2006, in a surprise move, Zirkle settled out of court with a $1.3 million payment as well as payment of plaintiffs' legal fees.

The stakes are high for corporations--and CEOs. The RICO threat is compounded by the fact that immigration officials are increasingly targeting executives for prosecution. Immigration agents recently arrested seven current and former executives of IFCO Systems, a manufacturer of wooden crates and pallets, and rounded up more than a thousand of the firm's allegedly undocumented employees.

Julie Myers, chief of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, said there would be "no tolerance for corporate officers who harbor illegal aliens for their work force.…We will use all our investigative tools to bring those individuals to justice, no matter how large or small their company."

IFCO Systems executives aren't alone. Earlier this month, the owners of Kawasaki Restaurants pleaded guilty to felony counts that carry a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison. They admitted to hiring illegal immigrants as low-wage employees at their Japanese restaurants, and agreed to surrender more than $1.1 million in cash, property and vehicles.

None of that money will be used to compensate former workers, who can pursue their own claims. Once again, Julie Myers noted that "targeting the profits of illegal alien employment scheming is a tactic [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] is adopting nationwide."

Between the increase in civil RICO suits, and the energized federal immigration service, the cost of doing business may have risen significantly. But there are ways of avoiding these costs. CEOs must establish a comprehensive immigration plan to ensure that they comply with current immigration and employment law. In today's increasingly litigious environment, employers can't afford to ignore this new risk.

Making phony ID documents for illegal workers is a big business


WASHINGTON - Forgers are making tens of millions, and possibly billions, of dollars selling counterfeit Social Security cards, driver's licenses, immigrant registration cards and other papers to an estimated 12 million illegal immigrants.

The dominant forgery-and-distribution network in the United States allegedly is controlled by the Castorena family, say U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials. Its members emigrated from Mexico in the late 1980s and have used their printing skills and business acumen to capture a big piece of the booming industry.

Only trained experts can distinguish its fake identity documents from real ones, and the Castorena Family Organization, or CFO, as ICE officials call it, has spread to at least 50 cities in 33 states.

At a sentencing hearing for one family member in December, U.S. District Judge Lewis T. Babcock of Denver said that the CFO's criminal reach is "simply breathtaking" and strikes "at the heart of the sovereignty of the United States of America."

The threat of terrorism has made document forgers even more menacing since the 9/11 attacks. Two of the 9/11 hijackers used fraudulent notarized forms to obtain valid Virginia ID cards, which enabled them to board the two airliners that crashed into the World Trade Center.

Julie Myers, the assistant secretary for ICE, calls document forging an "epidemic." Her agency, a branch of the Department of Homeland Security, is waging a nationwide crackdown on forgery rings and has formed multi-agency task forces in 10 cities, including Dallas, Philadelphia, Atlanta and St. Paul, Minn.

The agency's investigations have hobbled many CFO operations, indicting and convicting family members and senior subordinates. But the CFO's fugitive chieftain, Pedro Castorena-Ibarra, still controls operations from Mexico, agency investigators said, and the family enterprise continues to dominate the illicit document trade in the United States.

ICE agents are conducting more than 3,500 investigations nationwide into document forging. They've closed document mills in Charlotte, N.C., Los Angeles, Denver and several other cities in recent months. But CFO cells continue to operate in many cities, including Dallas; Houston; Miami; Kansas City, Mo.; Los Angeles; New York; Chicago; Atlanta; and Newark, N.J.

Federal authorities said it's virtually impossible to calculate the financial scope of document forging, but illicit profits easily amount to many millions of dollars, if not billions. One investigation of CFO operations in Los Angeles alone resulted in the seizure of 3 million documents with a street value of more than $20 million.

"We've hit them pretty hard, but have we shut down the entire operation? I don't think we can say that yet," said Scott A. Weber, chief of ICE's Identity and Benefit Fraud Unit in the agency's Washington headquarters. "We know there are many different cells out there, and they are still providing documents."

In recent years, the CFO has faced competition from rival organizations, including a group called the Los Acapulcos Organization, which has cells in Denver and Phoenix. Scores of operatives in both organizations have been arrested and deported to Mexico and other countries in Latin America.

The rise of illegal-document vendors is an unintended consequence of the 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act, which is widely considered a failure. It put the onus on employers to ensure that a job applicant has legitimate papers, such as a Social Security card, driver's license or voter-registration card.

Employers complain that they often can't tell real documents from phonies, and they risk being charged with a discrimination violation if they reject a qualified applicant. The 1986 law imposed civil penalties on employers of illegal immigrants, but the sanctions have been enforced haphazardly at best.

Unscrupulous employers also exploited the statute, authorities say. In mid-April, ICE agents raided the nationwide operations of Houston-based IFCO Systems, a pallet-recycling firm, after an undercover investigation led to allegations that midlevel managers were recruiting illegal immigrants and helping them obtain phony documents. Top company officials have said that they thought the documentation was legitimate.

Illegal immigrants are often given packages of phony documents as part of a $2,000 smuggling fee. Others can easily make contact with vendors who operate on street corners or at flea markets in immigrant communities in virtually every city.

In Washington, vendors operate openly in the city's ethnically diverse Adams-Morgan neighborhood, only a few miles north of the White House, said James Spero, an ICE agent in the agency's metropolitan Washington office. Peddlers attract potential customers by forming a C-shape with their thumbs and forefingers, a sign widely recognized among illegal immigrants that the peddlers have documents for sale.

A typical transaction usually includes key papers such as a Social Security card, a driver's license and a "green card" granting immigrants permanent U.S. residency. Fees range from $75 to $300, depending on quality.

After a customer places the order, a runner takes the money and a photo to a document mill, typically in a nondescript house or apartment. The false documents are often in the customer's hands within an hour.

Some fakes are laughingly amateurish. Analysts at the ICE document lab in Northern Virginia said they occasionally come across ironed-on laminated cards that contain imprints of the irons. One forger trying to replicate a document from a foreign country used a picture of his uncle as a stand-in for the country's president.

Forgers often use their own fingerprints when documents require them. They also routinely make up or use Social Security numbers that can match many numbers held by legitimate citizens and can be a first step toward full identity theft. Knight Ridder reported last month that the Social Security Administration and the Internal Revenue Service routinely receive evidence of people using bogus Social Security numbers, but they refuse to share that information with ICE officials, who want to use the data to search for illegal immigrants and the companies that employ them.

Lawmakers are struggling to craft a new immigration law to correct the last law's shortcomings with tamper-proof identity cards and a nationwide databank, but skeptics fear that resourceful criminals will still find ways to beat the system.

The gold standard for document forgeries, investigators said, comes off the assembly line of the Castorena network. The organization built its fortune by employing the same principles used by successful legitimate corporations: a superior product, franchises in major cities and a coast-to-coast sales force.

CFO counterfeiters microscopically study relevant U.S. documents and meticulously replicate virtually every detail, including some security features that are embedded into the laminate in an attempt to prevent duplication.

Analysts using high-tech equipment at the ICE document lab unfailingly spot forgeries, but the Castorena-produced documents can easily fool employers and even the trained eyes of cops on the street.

Pedro Castorena-Ibarra, one of ICE's 10 most wanted fugitives, allegedly started the operation with three brothers and two sisters after they entered the country and settled in the heavily Hispanic MacArthur Park section of Los Angeles.

In-laws and trusted lieutenants became part of the leadership as the network expanded across the country by charging "franchise fees" of up to $15,000 per month to run document mills.

Key CFO operatives routinely use phony documents to mask their identities. In some cases, they're known only by nicknames, such as "Gabby," the suspected leader in Kansas City, and "Coyote," the Houston cell leader. The leader in Dallas is believed to be Alberto Soto-Ronquillo, who's been part of the CFO for more than a decade, ICE agents say.

For years, the organization supplied most of the nation's print stock of phony documents. Later it distributed computer templates after the high-tech era opened the door to computerized counterfeiting, investigators said. Court documents from a Denver investigation describe the network as "intricately orchestrated and exceptionally well-organized."

The Castorenas forbid local operatives from drug trafficking and other sideline trades that would attract increased scrutiny from law enforcement, investigators said. They also regularly update their products to keep pace with government-mandated changes in official documents.

Castorena-Ibarra, 42, who fled to Mexico to escape federal indictments, still runs the organization, passing orders through surrogates in the United States, said Cory Voorhis, an ICE special agent in Denver.

ICE officials said they're working with Mexican authorities to return him to the United States, but the mustachioed fugitive moves frequently and changes cell phones every few days.

At one point, he was thought be living with his wife and son in a lavishly furnished home in Zapopan, a suburb of Guadalajara. He travels frequently to Mexico City and is thought to have several mistresses. ICE also has received information that Castorena-Ibarra and other family members have invested in legitimate businesses such as real estate and taxicab companies.

"He's pretty comfortable," Voorhis said. "He believes he's safe."

Judge strikes California city's law against day laborers



A Southern California city's ban on day laborers' soliciting work from passing drivers violates freedom of speech, a federal judge has ruled.

The law in Redondo Beach, southwest of Los Angeles, stifles laborers' constitutional right to ask for work, U.S. District Judge Consuelo Marshall of Los Angeles said in a ruling last week. She also said the ordinance was so broad that it could apply to children selling lemonade at a sidewalk stand or Girl Scouts selling cookies.

With the ban on seeking work from motorists, the city had no "adequate means by which the day laborers could solicit employment," Marshall said.

She said the city's argument that many day laborers were illegal immigrants, and thus not entitled to employment, was irrelevant because the constitutional guarantee of free speech is not limited by immigration status.

Labor and immigrant advocates praised the ruling Wednesday.

"Looking for work should not be a crime," said Pablo Alvarado, coordinator of the National Day Laborer Organizing Network, which was a plaintiff in the case. "We now have several judicial opinions agreeing, and we hope cities will refrain from engaging in further civil rights violations against day laborers."

But Redondo Beach City Attorney Michael Webb said the ordinance was copied almost word-for-word from an anti-solicitation law in Phoenix that the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld in 1986. He said he planned to appeal Marshall's ruling _ which found differences between the Redondo Beach and Phoenix laws _ to the Ninth Circuit, which oversees federal courts in nine Western states.

"This has been a problem for decades in Redondo, day laborers congregating and seeking employment," Webb said. He said the city had tried a variety of approaches, including strict enforcement of laws against blocking traffic and inviting federal agents to conduct immigration sweeps, before beginning a short-lived crackdown under its anti-soliciting ordinance in October 2004.

Marshall issued an injunction two months later halting enforcement while the suit was pending, an order that the Ninth Circuit upheld last May in a decision that did not address the constitutional issue. The appeals court could resolve that issue for the state and region, however, in a pending case involving a Glendale ordinance that another federal judge struck down in 2004.

The lawyer who challenged Redondo Beach's ordinance said a ban on labor solicitation in some areas of a city would be on stronger legal footing than a total ban.

But an ordinance that established a labor recruitment zone would still be unconstitutional "if they put it under a freeway where no one could possibly stop," said Robert Rubin, legal director of the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights in San Francisco, who argued the case before Marshall.

"No one is saying anybody, including day laborers, can go into the street and cause traffic problems," Rubin said. "They do have the right to free speech . . . in the same way that someone hailing a cab does."

The Redondo Beach ordinance makes it a crime to solicit work, business or contributions from a public street or sidewalk, or to hire a person who solicits work.

Marshall said the city had other ways of pursuing its legitimate goals of traffic safety and crime prevention, such as enforcing existing laws against obstructing traffic, parking illegally and loitering.

Anti-illegal immigration measure makes San Bernardino ballot

LOS ANGELES – A San Bernardino measure that would prohibit landlords from renting to illegal immigrants and force day laborers to prove legal residency to work has qualified for a special election, a city official said Thursday.

The minimum 2,216 valid signatures had been counted, setting the stage for an election, said San Bernardino City Clerk Rachel Clark.

Joseph Turner, an anti-illegal immigration activist who sponsored the initiative, said it would show cities that they have the power to combat illegal immigration.

Turner said the initiative specifically aimed to circumvent a Supreme Court ruling prohibiting public schools from asking students for proof of legal residency.

“If an undocumented family can't live in the city, they can't send their children to public schools,” he said.

The proposal also would ban taxpayer funded day labor centers, mandate that city business be in English and deny permits to businesses hiring illegal immigrants. In most cases, violators would be fined $1,000.

Nationwide, cities are dealing differently with the estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants, a majority of whom are Hispanic. While some cities have built day labor centers and declared themselves immigrant “sanctuaries,” others have used city ordinances to arrest day laborers and voted to have their police officers enforce immigration law.

When a special election might be called was unknown. The City Council can first decide to approve the measure without alteration, said Clark.

If the council rejects it, a special citywide election must be held in 90 to 135 days.

Calls Thursday afternoon to the office of Mayor Patrick Morris were not immediately returned.

Just under 50 percent of San Bernardino's 200,000 residents are Hispanic, according to U.S. Census Bureau data. And voters in the city 70 miles east of Los Angeles previously elected twice Judith Valles, a Hispanic woman, as mayor.

“This initiative is divisive and racist in its nature,” said Armando Navarro, coordinator of the National Alliance for Human Rights, an umbrella for Hispanic activist groups in Southern California. “We are going to mobilize and do all we can to defeat it.”

Mexico works to add jobs to ease emigration
Country expected to add 1 million workers this year, economy minister says

AUSTIN, Texas - Mexico is working hard to create jobs so that its people do not have to emigrate to find work and expects to add up to 1 million new jobs this year, Mexican Economy Minister Sergio Garcia said Thursday.

He said employment growth and ebbing population growth in Mexico should ease immigration into the United States, where hundreds of thousands of people demonstrated on May Day in response to moves to crack down on illegal immigrants.

“The most important solution is the generation of employment in our country,” Garcia told a news conference during the World Congress on Information Technology.

“We are working on that. This year by April 15 we had 306,000 new formal jobs generated. The expectation is at least 800,000, possibly 1 million new jobs this year in our country,” he said.

Garcia said the government had undertaken many new efforts to create jobs during the administration of President Vicente Fox, whose six-year term ends this fall.

“They are working intensely in the creation of jobs” by encouraging growth of small and medium-size businesses and improving education and infrastructure, Garcia said.

At the same time, he said Mexico’s population growth was slowing, he said. “The young population that Mexico has now is changing radically,” Garcia said. “So we are in the last years of strong pressure to generate employment.”

Immigration issue pushes toward 'top concern'
Zogby survey finds illegals crisis eclipses economy, gas prices


Just as the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, awakened the U.S. to the threat of terrorism, the publicity surrounding the May 1 boycott by illegal aliens and their supporters appears to have made the immigration issue one of Americans' top concerns, according to a new Zogby Interactive survey, and they're taking it out on President Bush.

While the war in Iraq continues to be seen as the top issue facing the nation for 37 percent of respondents, immigration and the war on terror came in with a close second at 32 percent each.

The vote split significantly along political and demographic lines, with 53 percent of Republicans calling immigration a top concern and just 10 percent of Democrats agreeing. The Iraq war and health care, health insurance and prescription drugs were the Democrats' chief concern.

Forty-eight percent of older voters – those over age 65 – gave immigration top billing while only 22 percent of voters under age 30 saw the issue as primary. Voters in Western states, which have been more severely impacted by immigration, ranked immigration first in greater numbers than those in the East.

The current bright U.S. economic outlook put concerns over jobs and the economy in sixth place overall. Even gas prices and utility rates, rapidly rising and the subject of numerous recent proposals in Congress, were the top issue for only 11 percent of respondents.

The focus on immigration was mirrored in the high negative ratings given Bush for his handling of the issue. His 36 percent overall positive job approval rating was heavily weighted downward by the 85 percent who scored him negatively on the issue of immigration.

Further, the immigration issue may be coloring participants' views of the president's performance on homeland security matters. Only 9 percent of voters rated him positive for his leadership in securing the nation's borders, while 45 percent gave him a positive rating for his handling of the broader war on terror – an overall drop from previous surveys.

The survey, conducted April 28 through May 1, included 5,712 respondents.

Many Nations Harsher on Immigrants


WASHINGTON — Defending his House-passed immigration bill that sparked street protest by millions of immigrants, the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee issued a report Friday showing that several countries are harsher than the United Stated in their treatment of illegal immigrants and their employers.

The Law Library of Congress study of immigration laws in six countries found that all but Brazil have criminal penalties for illegal entry and presence within their borders.

In four of the countries _ Japan, Switzerland, Sweden and Egypt _ employers can be jailed for up to three months to up to three years for hiring illegal immigrants.

"With all the blustery rhetoric coming from opponents about a 'harsh' and 'draconian' House bill ..., I note that five out of the six countries studied _ including Mexico _ make illegal entry and unlawful presence a criminal offense," said Rep. James Sensenbrenner, R-Wis.

The House bill, written largely by Sensenbrenner, would make being in the country illegally a felony. It already is a misdemeanor to enter the country illegally, and re-entering the country after being deported also is a crime.

Illegal presence in the U.S. is now a civil offense.

After street protests and demonstrations last month, House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., and Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., pledged that illegal immigrants would not be prosecuted as felons in a final House-Senate version of the bill if it gets that far.

A bill considered by the Senate last month did not include criminalizing being in the United States illegally. Instead, it would have allowed many of the estimated 12 million illegal immigrants to remain, work and eventually become legal residents after paying fines and back taxes and learning English.

The Senate bill faltered just before Easter but leaders in both parties have said they would bring it up again this month.

The Law Library study found that prison sentences for being in the country illegally ranged from up to three months in Egypt to up to three years in Japan. Employers were most severely punished in Japan, facing up to three years in prison for hiring undocumented workers.

Sensenbrenner said the six countries studied were chosen to provide racial and geographic diversity.

Muzaffar Chishti, director of the Migration Policy Institute at New York University School of Law, complained that Sensenbrenner's study didn't look at the resources the six countries devoted to enforcing their immigration laws.

"I don't know what lesson one could draw from them," he said, adding that U.S. spending on border enforcement has increased fivefold since 1986 and manpower devoted to it has more than tripled. Chishti's institute supports guest worker programs for immigrants.

Rumors of raid cancel festivities


Fears of federal authorities rounding up illegal immigrants also spur drops in attendance at churches.
Fears of illegal immigration crackdowns in Tulsa have led to the cancellation of a major Cinco de Mayo festival this weekend as well as shrinking attendance at Hispanic churches.

"The rumor is very strong about immigration (authorities) picking up people," said Blas Gaytan, coordinator of the Cinco de Mayo event at Expo Square.

The rumors are unfounded, officials say, but the fear created by them is still affecting public gatherings.

Anticipating weak attendance at the Cinco de Mayo event, Gaytan and Expo Square officials decided to scrap it to avoid a financial loss.

"It was an economic decision," said Paula Crain, Expo Square's events coordinator. "The timing was just wrong."

The three-day festival, which would have started Friday, attracted between 10,000 and 15,000 people last year, Crain said.

Elsewhere in Tulsa and surrounding towns, churches with large Hispanic congregations have reported low numbers in the last few weeks.

"Attendance has dropped because there were rumors that immigration enforcement was here," said
David Medina, director of the Hispanic Apostolate Diocese of Tulsa. "The ones who came were afraid."

In the past few Sundays, only about half of the congregation turned out for Mass at St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church, 2431 E. Admiral Blvd.

The same is true for predominately Hispanic churches in Tahlequah, Pryor and Stillwater, he said.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokesman Carl Rusnok said the rumors likely stem from a raid in late April when 1,000 employees of pallet manufacturer IFCO were arrested at more than 40 company sites nationwide, including one in Oklahoma City.

"There have been many, many rumors floating around the nation, and not just Oklahoma and Texas," Rusnok said in a telephone interview from Dallas.

Without commenting on specifics of the agency's enforcement policy, Rusnok said "criminal aliens" and businesses that hire illegal immigrants are a high priority.

"The point to be made is that anybody who is here illegally runs the risk of being identified, detained and deported to their country of origin," he said.

The number of illegal immigrants living in Tulsa is not known, but informal estimates suggest that about 35,000 people live here illegally.

Last year, ICE deported 167,700 people nationwide, with about 84,300 of those classified as criminal aliens. The majority of those who are deported are from Mexico, Rusnok said.

Tulsa immigration attorney Mark Leblang said it would damage the reputation of federal agents if they were to randomly raid churches and events where illegal immigrants gather peacefully.

"I don't see immigration (authorities) going to local Cinco de Mayo events or going to a church because that just gives the U.S. government a bad name," Leblang said.

Immigration agents have plenty of access to illegal immigrants through the court system and businesses, he said.

"They don't need to come out and raid a rally," he said.

Although the rumors of random crackdowns might be false, the fears exist, Leblang said.

They come at a time when immigration has been in the national spotlight with this week's "A Day Without Immigrants" work and business boycott.

A pro-immigrant rally in downtown Tulsa drew a few thousand people, but organizers says the numbers were lower than expected because of "migra" fears. Migra is a term Spanish speakers commonly use to refer to U.S. immigration enforcement.

Those fears have not stopped another Cinco de Mayo festival, set to be held in Tulsa at Plaza Santa Cecilia, 2160 S. Garnett Road.

"It's nothing but rumors -- there's nothing going on," said co-owner Elizabeth Miranda.

The event, which includes music, food and a carnival, is scheduled from noon to 10 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.

The Mexican holiday celebrates the 1862 Battle of Puebla, in which the Mexican Army defeated French invaders.

The holiday often is confused with Mexican Independence Day, which is Sept. 15.

Arivaca blaze started as immigrants' signal fire

A wildland fire burning some 200 acres near Arivaca was started by two illegal immigrants, federal authorities said this morning.
The men started two fires, one a warming fire and the other a signal fire to seek help because one of the men was injured, authorities said. The two were taken into custody, questioned, and voluntarily returned to Mexico, federal officials said. The U.S. Attorney's Office declined to prosecute the men, officials said.
The men were returned to Mexico Wednesday night, Border Patrol Agent Sean King said.
The men had started two fires one a warming fire and the other a larger signal fire, said Marylee Peterson, a Coronado National Forest Service fire information officer.
A Buenos Aires Wildlife Refuge employee on his way to work about 7 a.m. Wednesday spotted and reported the fire and Border Patrol agents arriving first at the fire found the two immigrants, one with a sprained ankle, said Dean McAllister, the Coronado's fire management officer.
The immigrants had set the larger fire to get help for the injured man, Peterson said. King said they set fire to a tree.
The immigrants were turned over to Coronado law enforcement officers for questioning, McAlister said, adding the U.S. Attorney's Office declined prosecution in the fire.
McAlister said that decision was based on "legal technicalities."
He would not elaborate other than to say, "None of these folks have the financial means to pay for a fire." He also noted a further cost to taxpayers to imprison the men if they were convicted of setting the fire.
McAlister said he expects the fire to be contained by 6 p.m. today at a cost of $50,000 to $60,000.
Fire officials immediately assigned a large number of firefighters and equipment to the fire, burning about seven miles south of Arivaca, Peterson said.
This morning there were some 65 firefighters, six fire engines, two helicopters and four airplanes assigned to battle the blaze, Peterson said. The fire is burning through dry grass and shrubs and mesquite trees, Peterson said.
Authorities would not release the names of the two immigrants as they had not been charged with a crime.
In the summer of 2002 two set fires merged in eastern Arizona to form the state's most destructive wild land fire, the Rodeo-Chediski fire. The Rodeo-Chediski fire destroyed hundreds of homes and 490,000 acres of forest land.
Leonard Gregg, a parttime firefighter, pleaded guilty to setting the Rodeo fire to create work for himself, was sentenced to 10 years in prison and ordered to pay $27 million in restitution.
Valinda Jo Elliot was lost in the woods and set a signal fire that grew into the Chediski fire. Federal authorities decided not to prosecute her as they felt there was not enough evidence of criminal intent.

Schwarzenegger blasts immigration policy

California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said Congress and U.S. President George Bush are to blame for the failure to enact immigration reform.

Schwarzenegger said Congress shouldn`t have left for vacation without inking a deal between a hard-line House bill and a Senate measure that is more lenient for undocumented workers.

'For them to go home for spring break and not really take care of it when they know this was boiling here in this country is also irresponsible,' he said, speaking at a press conference at a Roseville, Calif., middle school.

Among other aspects, the House bill would make felons of undocumented workers; the Senate bill would allow them to earn citizenship.

Millions of people have marched in rallies across the United States in recent weeks in protest over the House bill, which Schwarzenegger said is a clear sign the public isn`t happy with Washington squabbling on the issue.

Schwarzenegger, who emigrated from Austria to the United States in 1968, said the ability for terrorists to cross the border isn`t a good situation either, the Los Angeles Times reports.

He said the immigration issue has been around for 20 years without any real action, adding, 'I think that all of this comes down to one thing: The federal government has failed the people of America in a terrible way, in a disastrous way, when it comes to this immigration situation.'

Valley judge hands Iraqis 6-month terms

Men claim to be Christians who are persecuted

BROWNSVILLE - Three Iraqi men who say they are persecuted Christians and are seeking asylum were sentenced Friday to the maximum six months in prison after being caught sneaking into Texas.

Border Patrol agents arrested Ammar Habib Zaya, Aamr Bahnan Boles and Remon Manssor Piuz on April 29 near the Los Indios international bridge near Harlingen, federal court records show.

The men, ranging in age from 20 to 25, pleaded guilty Monday to illegal entry, crossing the border from Mexico.

Defense attorney Humberto Yzaguirre has said the men were interviewed by federal officials and are not suspected of terrorism.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Felix Recio questioned why the men did not go to an American consulate or any international bridge to try to seek asylum before illegally entering the country.

The prison terms will give them time to apply for asylum, Recio said.

When illegal immigrants crash, taxpayers usually foot the bill

Within the last month, close to three dozen illegal immigrants have been injured or killed in three Southern Arizona accidents.

The first happened April 19 near Elgin in Santa Cruz County, the second on April 30 near Tangerine Road and Interstate 10 and on May 3 at Interstate 19 and Pima Mine Road.

Often, hospitals foot the bill to care for illegal immigrants injured here in the U.S.

Those costs are then passed on to the taxpayers.

Smugglers use older vehicles, cramming as many people as possible inside and taking extreme measures to get their cargo across the border.

In the last month, three separate accidents have occurred, one of them killing four illegal immigrants.

Agent Sean King of the Tucson Sector of the Border Patrol says, “Smugglers [are] taking action that they shouldn't be taking because they want to earn as much money possible and they earn their money by getting their illegal cargo to Phoenix or Tucson so that they can get paid.”

According to the Border Patrol, vehicle wrecks are frequent with the victims needing medical attention.

“Paramedics are the ones who decide which hospital they go to and, in a large accident where there's a lot of people, it could be spread out to a bunch of hospitals in the area, depending on the need, what the hospital can help them with.”

Among them, the only trauma center in Southern Arizona, and weeks after one of the recent accidents illegal immigrants are still being treated at Tucson's University Medical Center.

“It has a negative impact on our bottom line. First, our priority is taking care of the people that are injured and making sure that they get the proper care, but the reality is that there is no direct reimbursement for that,” said Kevin Burn, Chief Financial Officer for UMC.

Two months ago, UMC received $500,000 of your tax money from the federal government as payment, but it’s not enough.

According to Burns, “At the current run rate we'll incur 5-to-6 million dollars in unreimbursed costs for taking care of foreign nationals.”

Illegals smuggle kids inside gas tanks
'A very dangerous trend of stuffing minors in trunks, in hidden compartments'

 Alejandro Valenzuela, a loquacious 12-year-old, memorized the details of a borrowed U.S. birth certificate and jumped in the front seat of his smuggler's car.

Tired from a two-day bus trip to the border from Mexico's central state of Jalisco, Alejandro soon fell asleep. He was awakened by the flashlight of a U.S. immigration inspector.

 "I told him in English, 'I'm an American citizen,' but he kept asking questions. That's all the English I know," Alejandro said as he rested at a child welfare office back in Tijuana, across the border from San Diego.

Alejandro is one of a rising number of children trying to sneak into the United States without their parents. Some hide in cars or try to pass themselves off as U.S. citizens, while others ride inner tubes across the Rio Grande or trek through the harsh Arizona desert.

Since October, about 70,000 children have been detained along the Mexican border, a 5 percent increase over the same period a year earlier, the U.S. Border Patrol says.

Like Alejandro _ who wants to get to Corona, Calif., to join a father he hasn't seen in nine years _ most children are heading north to reunite with parents living illegally in the United States.

The Sept. 11 terror attacks prompted the United States to tighten security along its southern border, making it harder to sneak in. Rather than risking a return to Mexico to get their children, many migrants are paying smugglers to bring them north.

Experts say that number will likely increase if the U.S. Congress presses ahead with plans to tighten border security even more.

In the traditional method of crossing children, a smuggler drives across the border pretending to be a relative of the child, who is carrying false or "borrowed" documents. But border agents are giving closer scrutiny to documents, and smugglers are tyring other methods.

"We're seeing a very dangerous trend of stuffing minors in trunks, in hidden compartments, in washing machines, even in gas tanks," said Adele Fasano, director of field operations for the San Diego district of U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

Her district includes the San Ysidro Port of Entry, the world's busiest border crossing.

Last August, border inspectors found a 10-year-old boy who had been sedated with cough medicine and crammed inside the dashboard of a van. The boy was unconscious and dehydrated, Fasano said.

Other children detained on the California border have been found strapped under car seats, rolled into carpets, hidden in compartments welded under pickup trucks and _ in one case _ stuffed inside a pinata.

Fasano said many of those children had to be treated for respiratory distress or burns from being near hot engines.

"These are criminals working with sophisticated smuggling organizations that will go to any length to make money," Fasano said. "That parents would turn their children over to these criminals is very distressing."

Migrants pay up to $2,500 to have a child smuggled through an official border crossing into California. The fee is often cut in half for crossings by foot through the hills near Tijuana or Tecate or across the Arizona desert.

Mexican authorities say they are seeing more children smuggled through the Arizona desert, where migrants often endure three days of walking in searing heat during the day and freezing cold at night.

In the first three months of this year, Mexican officials turned back 3,289 minors at border crossings in the state of Sonora, across from Arizona _ more than double the 1,566 sent back in the same period last year.

Juan Enrique Mendez, who oversees the Tijuana child welfare office that receives children turned over by U.S. authorities, said his center has handled more than 1,700 youngsters since January, 200 more than in the same period last year.

"A lot of the children arrive in a very delicate emotional state," he said. "When they are caught, they're often scared and ask us if they're now criminals because they have been to prison."

More than half of the minors who attempt to cross through the Tijuana area are between 13 and 17, but the child welfare office also receives an average of five children a month who are younger than 2, Mendez said.

Child migrants are usually accompanied to the border by a parent or a close relative who intends to cross later. Those relatives follow the youngsters' progress from Mexico, and by the time they are caught, anxious mothers or worried uncles have usually already called Mendez's office looking for information.

He said most children are turned over to their families the same day they are repatriated by U.S. authorities. The rest go to a government- run shelter or the YMCA until they are picked up _ when they often try to cross again.

Alejandro was waiting for his grandmother to come and take him to a Tijuana hotel, where they would meet another smuggler.

"I want to go to the United States to study and to see my father," Alejandro said. "My father sends me money on my birthday and gifts for Christmas, but what I want is to see him."

Florida judge sees 30-40 illegals each week
Unlawful immigrants show up in court for not having driver's licenses

Supporters of illegal immigrants say they should have licenses

VERO BEACH — Every Tuesday morning, about two dozen men and women, sometimes more, huddle quietly in an alcove on the second floor of the Indian River County Courthouse.

An interpreter speaks to them briefly before they file into a courtroom to answer criminal charges they have little power to contest.

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They are illegal immigrants, mostly from Mexico, who have been charged with driving a vehicle without a valid driver's license.

The courtroom scenes are repeated each week in courthouses in St. Lucie and Martin counties as well.

The defendants are non-English speaking citrus harvesters, construction workers, landscapers or manual laborers who exist in Florida's shadows and have virtually no understanding of the American legal system.

But when police pull them over and they can't produce a driver's license, they find themselves ticketed and given a court date, or even jailed and their vehicles impounded.

Supporters of illegal immigrants say they should be granted driving privileges to enable them to maintain jobs, and some claim the immigrants are unfairly profiled by law enforcement.

But judges, prosecutors, police officers and jail officials say they are following laws intended to keep Florida's roadways safe.

"Close-minded people want to make criminals of the people working in the fields, in hotels and restaurants," Fellsmere restaurant owner David Almanza said. "Giving them a driver's license would clear up a lot of problems because they'd have to pass driving tests, become more educated about our laws and they'd be able to insure their cars."

Indian River County Judges David Morgan and Joe Wild say they issue standard penalties of $415 for driving without a license.

'Extremely frustrated'

In Fort Pierce, St. Lucie County Judge Philip J. Yacucci Jr. said he is "extremely frustrated" by the lack of a coherent federal policy on immigration because he sees 30 to 40 unlicensed immigrants in his courtroom each week.

"The federal government is hypocritical because it has zero policy to remedy illegal immigration," Yacucci said. "We're left at the state level to deal with the problem."

Thomas Genung, trial court administrator for the 19th Judicial Circuit, said determining a defendant's citizenship in traffic court "is not an element of the law." In fact, as the number of illegal immigrants grows, the 19th Circuit has "an increasing need for Spanish-speaking interpreters," Genung said.

Assistant State Attorney Ed Taylor of Indian River County said immigrants can be deported if they accumulate three misdemeanor offenses, but he does not recall such a mandate being carried out.

'Their problem'

Morgan said the citizenship issue doesn't come up in his misdemeanor court hearings.

"If they are here illegally, that's their problem," Morgan said. "If someone appears before me for driving without a license, whether they're a gringo or an immigrant, I don't have a problem with punishing them.

"But if I went to Mexico, Peru, Spain, Russia or someplace else, it would be prudent for me to check out their rules before I went there."

Police throughout the Treasure Coast do not ask traffic offenders for proof of citizenship.

Vero Beach Police Lt. Kevin Martin said when a driver has no license or identification, the offender's thumbprint is put on the citation, which is filed with the national Automated Fingerprint Identification System.

"It's up to immigration to contact them at that point," Martin said.

Scott Melanson, police chief of Fellsmere, where the population is 73 percent Hispanic, says: "Whether they are citizens or not has nothing to do with the job we are doing during a traffic stop."

But Melanson added: "If a guy says he's Hector Gonzalez and he has no ID, he could be a mass murderer who is wanted in Texas. So he needs to be booked and fingerprinted."

Fellsmere City Manager Jason R. Nunemaker said a recent study showed that of 552 traffic stops in Fellsmere during a five-month period ending in February, 102 drivers did not have a driver's license.

Legally flimsy

Vero Beach attorney Stephen Fromang said he believes some traffic stops are legally flimsy, but he says immigrants don't fight citations for fear of being deported.

"If these people contested the charges, 90 percent of the time the state would drop the case because there was no probable cause for the stop," Fromang said.

But Wild said: "Any attorney who says these cases can't be contested is full of baloney. The immigration service wouldn't know if a defendant requested a jury trial or filed a motion to suppress. The reason these tickets are not contested is because they know they are guilty of the offense."

Barbara Gonzalez, spokeswoman for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Miami, said all illegal aliens are subject to deportation.

But Gonzalez added: "We do have our priorities, and we focus on people who pose a public safety and national security threat."

Captain Bill McMullen, director of Indian River County Jail, said detainees are asked their place of birth at booking. He said Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in Fort Pierce are notified if a detainee appears to be illegal.

"Of course, people have the opportunity to not tell us the truth about where they were born," McMullen said.

'SECRETS OF THE INVASION'
Why America's government invites rampant illegal immigration
Posted: May 1, 2006
1:00 a.m. Eastern


© 2006 WorldNetDaily.com

It's widely regarded as America's biggest problem: Between 12 and 20 million aliens – including large numbers of criminals, gang members and even terrorists – have entered this nation illegally, with countless more streaming across our scandalously unguarded borders daily.

The issue polarizes the nation, robs citizens of jobs, bleeds taxpayers, threatens America's national security and dangerously balkanizes the country into unassimilated ethnic groups with little loyalty or love for America's founding values. Indeed, the de facto invasion is rapidly transforming America into a totally different country than the one past generations have known and loved.

And yet – most Americans have almost no idea what is really going on, or why it is happening.

While news reports depict demonstrations and debates, and while politicians promise "comprehensive border security programs," no real answers ever seem to emerge.

But there are answers. Truthful answers. Shocking answers.

In its groundbreaking May edition, WND's acclaimed monthly Whistleblower magazine reveals the astounding hidden agendas, plans and people behind America's immigration nightmare.

Titled "ALIEN NATION," the issue is subtitled "SECRETS OF THE INVASION: Why government invites rampant illegal immigration." Indeed, it reveals pivotal secrets very few Americans know. For example:

# Did you know that the powerfully influential Council on Foreign Relations – often described as a “shadow government" – issued a comprehensive report last year laying out a five-year plan for the "establishment by 2010 of a North American economic and security community" with a common "outer security perimeter"?

Roughly translated: In the next few years, according to the 59-page report titled "Building a North American Community," the U.S. must be integrated with the socialism, corruption, poverty and population of Mexico and Canada. "Common perimeter" means wide-open U.S. borders between the U.S., Mexico and Canada. As Phyllis Schlafly reveals in this issue of Whistleblower: "This CFR document asserts that President Bush, Mexican President Vicente Fox and Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin 'committed their governments' to this goal when they met at Bush's ranch and at Waco, Texas, on March 23, 2005. The three adopted the 'Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America' and assigned 'working groups' to fill in the details. It was at this same meeting, grandly called the North American Summit, that President Bush pinned the epithet 'vigilantes' on the volunteers guarding our border in Arizona."

The CFR report – important excerpts of which are published in Whistleblower – also suggests North American elitists begin getting together regularly, and presumably secretly, "to buttress North American relationships, along the lines of the Bilderberg or Wehrkunde conferences, organized to support transatlantic relations." The Bilderberg and Wehrkunde conferences are highly secret conclaves of the powerful. For decades, there have been suspicions that such meetings were used for plotting the course of world events and especially the centralization of global decision-making.

# Did you know that radical immigrant groups – including the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF), the Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlan (MEChA) and the National Council of La Raza (La Raza) – not only share a revolutionary agenda of conquering America's southwest, but they also share common funding sources, notably the Ford and Rockefeller foundations?

''California is going to be a Hispanic state," said Mario Obeldo, former head of MALDEF. "Anyone who does not like it should leave." And MEChA's goal is even more radical: an independent ''Aztlan,'' the collective name this organization gives to the seven states of the U.S. Southwest – Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas and Utah. So why would the Rockefeller and Ford foundations support such groups? Joseph Farah tells the story in this issue of Whistleblower.

Why have America's politicians – of both major parties – allowed the illegal alien invasion of this nation to continue for the last 30 years unabated? With al-Qaida and allied terrorists promising to annihilate major U.S. cities with nuclear weapons, with some big-city hospital emergency rooms near closure due to the crush of so many illegals, with the rapid spread throughout the U.S. of MS-13, the super-violent illegal alien gang – with all this and more, why do U.S. officials choose to ignore the laws of the land and the will of the people to pursue, instead, policies of open borders and lax immigration enforcement?

The answers to all this and much more are in Whistleblower's "ALIEN NATION" issue.

Is there hope? Or is America lost to a demographic invasion destined to annihilate its traditional Judeo-Christian culture, and to the ever-growing likelihood that nuclear-armed jihadists will cross our porous borders and wreak unthinkable destruction here?

There most definitely is hope, according to this issue of Whistleblower. Although most politicians of both major political parties have long since abdicated their responsibility for securing America's borders and dealing effectively with the millions already here illegally, there are a few exceptions – most notably Colorado Rep. Tom Tancredo.

5 million more Latam migrants in US by 2015

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Some 5 million more Latin American migrants will arrive in the United States by 2015, regardless of whether Congress decides to criminalize or legalize illegal immigrants, according to a study released on Monday.

The U.S. recruitment company Manpower, which carried out the study, said toughening penalties for illegal immigration would not deter young adults in Mexico and Central and South America from pursuing a better life in the United States.

"The abundance of young people in Latin America, in the face of aging of populations in more developed countries, will generate a demand for workers," said Manpower Chairman and Chief Executive Jeffrey Joerres.

"Immigration cannot be held back ... and young people are extremely ambitious," he told a news conference.

There are 12-13 million illegal immigrants in the United States, around 11 million of them Mexicans. Each year another one million legal and illegal immigrants enter the country.

The report came as the Congress considers a proposal by President George W. Bush that would offer millions of illegal immigrants a path to citizenship.

The plan, which includes a temporary worker program, faces serious opposition in the Senate from Bush's own Republicans and a bill passed by the House of Representatives in December proposes making illegal immigration a felony.

Last week thousands of Latin American immigrants and Hispanic activists staged protests and a work stoppage in cities across the United States, wielding their economic clout to demand rights for illegal immigrants.

Officials on the U.S.-Mexico border have reported a small increase in the number of migrants sneaking into the United States in recent days, which they say might be linked to hopes of an amnesty.

Lawmakers unite to target immigration "coyotes"
By Colleen Slevin
The Associated Press

Denver - Capping weeks of wrangling over illegal immigration amid a furious national debate, lawmakers on Monday gave final backing to a bill aimed at "coyotes" who smuggle illegal workers for money.

The legislature earlier approved stiff fines for counterfeiting immigration documents and penalties for cities that discourage police from working with federal immigration authorities.

House Democrats killed most Republican proposals early in the session, which angered some in the GOP. But both parties were eventually able to support seven proposals, including the human smuggling bill, which now heads to Gov. Bill Owens.

Human smuggling is already a crime under federal law, but state law-enforcement agencies and immigration critics say federal authorities haven't been tough enough on people who transport illegal immigrants in crowded vans and trucks.

The bill targets only smugglers who are paid by their passengers, not the passengers themselves or someone who simply gives an illegal immigrant a lift.

Sponsor Sen. Peter Groff, D-Denver, said he thinks it's one of the few areas in illegal immigration where the state can act.

"It gives law enforcement a clear process they can take," he said.

Rep. David Schultheis, R-Colorado Springs, supported the human smuggling bill, but,

like the other successful measures, he wanted it to go further and have the passengers prosecuted too.

Schultheis also tried to have all employers in Colorado have to use a federal database to make sure all their new hires are here legally, which legislative staffers said would require about three people to enforce.

Instead, lawmakers backed a proposal to only require state contractors to use the database and face the loss of their contracts if they do.

Gabriela Flores, an organizer for the American Friends Services Committee, which advocates for immigrants, said she's afraid that some of the proposals could have unintended consequences, including causing state contractors to shy away from hiring even legal immigrants.

Because of that, she thinks it would have been better for state lawmakers to push for changes in Washington instead.

Illegal Aliens do not Have Legal 'Citizens Rights
Gordon Bishop

My mother’s mother came to America in the 1890s, arriving at the Ellis Island Immigration Center which still stands today next to the Statue of Liberty on the Jersey City waterfront.

My maternal grandmother followed the rules for legal immigration. She had to be healthy, or she would be rejected and sent back to where she came, a port city in northern Germany.

My grandmother also had to have relatives in this country and a job waiting for her. My grandmother worked at a diner in lower Manhattan, first scrubbing floors and toilets and grateful for the privilege of being an American.

When my grandmother learned English within a year, she was promoted to waitress. She then moved to Franklin, New Jersey, with her new husband and had nine children, my mother being the last born of the Romyns family.

My wife’s mother, Ann Turkovsky, was born in Slovakia and followed the same process as my grandmother to enter America through Ellis Island.

My wife and I came from families who were legal immigrants.

Why are millions of illegal aliens demonstrating and protesting in the streets of Los Angeles, New York City, Chicago, New Jersey and elsewhere, while waving Mexican flags instead of American flags?

They’re getting away with it because we live today in a lawless society. After a century of liberalism and political correctness, we have replaced "rule of law" with "mob rule."

America’s culture is headed for an implosion, or a civil war between the "legals" and "illegals."

Black Americans are on the side of "law and order." They are saying "No" to amnesty for illegals.

Most law-abiding citizens of America are for the legalization of the illegals. That is, they must first obey the law before they can become legalized immigrants. But the politics of power and money are willing to disrupt or even destroy our culture for the sake of cheap labor, right or wrong.

The Far Left is exploiting the showdown between the legals and illegals to garner votes for the liberal Democrat Party.

Corporate America is exploiting the Legal Vs. the Illegal argument so they can hire cheap labor in order to compete with China, India and other Eastern societies that pay their workers $1 or $2 a day with no medical or pension benefits.

America’s labor unions also don’t like the use of cheap labor that’s undermining their foundation in organizing workers that cost more than the illegals competing for these jobs.

So there you have it. We now have a corrupt government, a corrupt corporate operation and a corrupt organized labor movement, all taking America down the road to ruin. You must know about the ruination of the Roman Empire, which lasted some 500 years.

America is only 230 years old, its founding launched by the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776 – Independence Day. The beginning of freedom, liberty and opportunity.

Americans (the colonial settlers) won their first war sparked by a Tax Revolt against Great Britain, a monarchy that believed it could crush the isolated settlers with their mighty military, then the world’s superpower.

Well, the big guys lost and little guys won. It was won under a Constitution based on the "rule of law." That Constitution has since been perverted and polluted by a century of corrupt politicians and Supreme Courts that are yielding to "mob rule."

The protests by millions of illegals represent "mob rule" organized by those who are anti-war, anti-America, anti-capitalism (the free enterprise system), and, especially, anti-Bush, the leader of the free world.

And who are behind these illegal mobs? Socialist and Communist organizations such as the Workers World Party and ANSWER (Act Now to Stop War and End Racism), and the United Peace Movement, another Communist front that exploits words like "United" and "Peace" to brainwash Americans into thinking they really represent United and Peace ideals.

The liberal mainstream media promote the agenda of these Socialist-Communist organizations, including the ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union), a gang of liberal lawyers that really represent the American Criminal Liberties Union.

If Americans don’t reclaim their federal and State Constitutions soon, we will all be under the power and control of the lawless mob.

A wise Greek philosopher named Plato predicted some 2,000 years ago that "mob rule" will prevail unless the people protect and respect a Republic’s Constitution based on "rule of law."

We once were the proud and great Republic of the United States of America.

So much for a Republic, and so much for a Constitution. The mob is taking over America.

Feds Reimburse UMC for Treating Illegal Immigrants

This year alone University Medical Center will lose between five and six million dollars treating foreign nationals and illegal immigrants.  Now a first for UMC, the federal government is reimbursing the hospital for some of that care even though it's a just a fraction of the cost.  Just over a week ago a human smuggler running from border patrol agents crashed in Marana. The driver, an illegal immigrant himself, was clinging to life as agents pulled him to safety from a burning truck.  Badly injured he was flown to UMC and like the vast majority of illegal immigrants he'll never pay a penny for the top notch care he was provided, "we have a high level of foreign nationals who have no coverage, no ability to pay so the cost of that burden was falling on the backs of not only hospitals but also physicians and ambulance services," explains UMC Chief Financial Officer Kevin Burns.  He says hospitals not only have legal obligation to treat a person in an emergency, regardless of citizenship, but also a humanitarian one.  But he says when it comes to treating those who never pay their bill it cuts into the hospitals bottom line, "we want to be cutting edge, we're a teaching hospital and our doctors, our community expects us to be leading edge, cutting edge, so it puts constraints on our ability to buy equipment and do upgrades to our facility that we'd like to do."

     That's why a about a year and a half ago the government set aside one billion dollars to help hospitals recoup some of the money lost treating foreign nationals.  UMC recently got it's first quarterly paycheck of 400-thousand dollars.  By the end of the year the hospital hopes to get a total of 1.5 million, or about 12 cents on the dollar, not much but they'll take it, "we very much appreciate the additional support. It'll go a long way to help us expand our trauma and ER programs here." This 400-thousand dollars is the first installment UMC has received Burns wonders what will happen four years down the road when the one-billion dollars set aside by the government runs out.

Two companies, executives sentenced for illegal workers
Associated Press

FORT WORTH, Texas - Two executives of a company that hired illegal immigrants to do janitorial work at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport were sentenced Monday to federal prison.

Karen Sue Rowell, 48, president of Midwest Airport Services Inc., was sentenced to nine months and fined $5,000. Edward John Pitre, 49, the company's former operations manager, was sentenced to 15 months and fined $1,000, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

Midwest and Service Performance Corp., which also provides janitorial services for DFW Airport, pleaded guilty in March to immigration violations. On Monday, Midwest was ordered to pay a $150,000 fine, and SPC was ordered to pay $600,000.

Midwest admitted hiring at least 50 illegal immigrants for airport jobs, and SPC admitted hiring at least 200 illegal immigrants to work there from 1999 through 2002. During part of that time, Midwest and SPC had common ownership.

As part of their cooperation with the government, the companies started a compliance program to make sure that only legally documented workers are hired.

Last summer Pitre was convicted of one count of conspiracy to unlawfully harbor and shield illegal aliens from detection. A week earlier Rowell, who faced 63 counts, pleaded guilty to one count of aiding and abetting in false representation of U.S. citizenship.

Another Midwest executive, office manager Silvia Castillo, pleaded guilty last summer to aiding and abetting an employee who made a false statement. Castillo, who faced 33 counts, was fined $2,000 and is currently serving her eight-month sentence.

The case stems from a task force's surprise airport security sweep in 2002. Nearly 65 illegal immigrants from several companies were arrested, and several executives later were indicted.

Other Midwest and SPC managers have pleaded guilty to various federal charges, and some are to be sentenced in July.

U.S. alerting Mexico
to Minuteman patrols
'Unbelievable that our own government …
is sending intelligence to another country'


The U.S. Border Patrol is tipping off Mexican authorities on the positions of members of the Minuteman civilian patrols.

U.S. officials have agreed to the notification process to reassure the Mexican government that the illegal immigrants' rights are being observed, the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin of Ontario, Calif., reports.

When the Minuteman and other civilian border patrol groups help apprehend illegal immigrants, the Mexican government must be notified, according to three documents on the Mexican Secretary of Foreign Relations website.

A U.S. Customs and Border Protection spokesman confirmed to the Daily Bulletin the notification process, describing it as a standard procedure.

"It's not a secret where the Minuteman volunteers are going to be," Mario Martinez said.

"This ... simply makes two basic statements – that we will not allow any lawlessness of any type, and that if an alien is encountered by a Minuteman or arrested by the Minuteman, then we will allow that government to interview the person."

But angered Minuteman members say the reporting virtually nullifies their effectiveness and could endanger lives.

"Now we know why it seemed like Mexican officials knew where we were all the time," Chris Simcox, founder of the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps, told the Ontario paper.

"It's unbelievable that our own government agency is sending intelligence to another country," he said. "They are sending intelligence to a nation where corruption runs rampant, and that could be getting into the hands of criminal cartels.

"They just basically endangered the lives of American people."

Martinez said any illegal alien apprehended has the right to request counsel.

"We have to give their counsel the information about their apprehension, and that includes where they are apprehended, whether a Minuteman volunteer spotted them or a citizen," he said.

The spokesman said by entering into the cooperative agreement, the Border Patrol hoped to change Mexico's perception of the group as vigilantes.

One of the documents on the website, "Actions of the Mexican Government in Relation to the Activities of Vigilante Groups," describes a meeting with San Diego Border Patrol sector chief Darryl Griffen.

According to the document, Griffen "said that the Border Patrol will not permit any violence or any actions contrary to the law by the groups, and he is continuously aware of (the volunteer organizations') operations."

The document continues: "Mr. Griffen reiterated to the undersecretary his promise to notify the General Consul right away when the vigilantes detain or participate in the detention of any undocumented Mexicans."

The documents name the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps and the Chino, Calif.-based Friends of the Border Patrol.

TJ Bonner, president of the 10,000-member union National Border Patrol Council, told the Daily Bulletin his member agents have complained for years about the Mexican government "unduly influencing our enforcement policies."

"That's not a legitimate role for any foreign nation," he said.

The Minuteman weblog said the Daily Bulletin's story "does not report information told to the [Minuteman] media offices that the Border Patrol chiefs have also been passing along intelligence reports to the government of Mexico on the activities of Minutemen not only at the borders, but in locations such as Utah, Nevada, Illinois, Massachusetts and Tennessee."

The weblog said one report contained estimated chapter membership numbers of Minutemen in Illinois and a statement on activities. The report noted the group didn't seem to know any politicians there, indicating the Illinois Minutemen had not acquired political clout.

The Minuteman blog commented: "That is not a report on the location of Minutemen at the border, but political intelligence from our government to a foreign nation about the activities of American citizens petitioning our own government for redress of grievances."

Border agents interviewed by the paper said they have been asked to report the location of all civilian patrols to sector headquarters. But they are not to file the groups' names in reports if they spot illegal immigrants.

"Last year an internal memo notified all agents not to give credit to Minuteman volunteers or others who call in sightings of illegal aliens," said an agent who spoke to the Daily Bulletin on condition he not be identified. "We were told to list it as a citizen call and leave it at that. Many times, we were told not to go out to Minuteman calls."

BROWNSVILLE HERALD EXCLUSIVE: Cingular pulls "La Migra" ringtone


The Brownsville Herald

Cingular Wireless has removed a ringtone listed for sale on its Web site called "La Migra" and apologized for its offensive nature.

In it, a siren is heard, followed by a male voice that says in a southern accent: “Calmate, calmate, this is la migra. Por favor, put the oranges down and step away from the cell phone. I repeat-o, put the oranges down and step away from the telephone-o. I’m deporting you back home-o.”

Walt Sharp, a spokesman for AT&T, part owner of Cingular, would not immediately comment on the product.

“Let me do some inquiring,” he said after listening to it.

Latino issues activists from Brownsville to Washington, D.C. were outraged Tuesday, when they learned Cingular was selling what they considered a racist product.

“It’s horribly offensive and a disgusting thing,” said Brent Wilkes, national executive director of the League of United Latin American Citizens.

The ringtone was no longer available at 5:45 p.m.

After learning about the ringtone, Wilkes said he called AT&T Inc., named “America’s Most Admired Telecommunications Company” by Fortune magazine in February, demanding it be taken off the Web site.

Cingular officials seemed to be caught off guard by their own Web site’s content.

Mark Siegel, the company’s spokesman was nearly speechless after listening to the $2.49 ringtone.

“Oh my goodness, oh my goodness,” he said.

Like AT&T’s Walt Sharp, Siegel said he needed to do some research on the ringtone before offering comments.

In a later interview Tuesday, Siegel said, “We’re in the process of pulling the ringtone and needless to say, we deeply regret and apologize for it ever being there in the first place. The ringtone is blatantly offensive.”

Siegel said the company is reviewing its process of screening ringtones which are created by “a combination of companies that we work with and in-house (staff). But ultimately, Cingular is accountable for it.”

LULAC’s Brent Wilkes was pleased with the company’s apology and that it removed the product from its Web site, but there were still larger issues, he said.

“I don’t think (bigotry) is an official corporate policy, but there’s a legitimate question about corporate America crossing the line.”

Wilkes thought it was “hippocritical” for Cingular to have a Hispanic public relations department and boast of treating customers with respect, while at the same time selling a ringtone telling an immigrant to “put down the oranges.”

Immigrant Rights Blocs Push Voter Sign-Ups

 Trying to turn street protests into political power, immigrants rights groups say they are gearing up for a campaign to register 1 million new voters this spring and summer.

The groups, working together as the We Are America Alliance, plan a string of events around the country starting next week, including voter registration drives, citizenship workshops and street rallies.

Organizers also plan to lobby local, state and federal elected officials on immigration issues through phone calls, petitions and faxes. New York's action day will be May 20. A Wednesday news conference was scheduled to outline the local program.

"We need to take the energy and the passion of immigrants and their allies and hold elected officials accountable," said Chris Wood, campaign manager for New American Opportunity Campaign, a leading organizer.

Organizers also are aiming to get hundreds of thousands of people to rally for immigrants rights around the country over Labor Day weekend.

The alliance's members, such as the New York Immigration Coalition and the National Capital Immigration Coalition, have been working for years to reform immigration laws, said Germonique Jones of the Center for Community Change. Most did not support the May 1 work and school boycott and prefer more moderate measures to push for change.

The alliance is being announced this week in cities including Chicago, Los Angeles, Boston and Washington, D.C.

The immigrant rights movement has grown enormously in recent months, sparked in part by a proposed federal measure that would make it a felony to be in the country illegally.

Minutemen spread to the north

John Clark spent thousands of dollars in legal fees and several years trying to get his Chilean girlfriend -- now his wife -- into the United States.

So when he saw the Minuteman Project launched in April 2005 to guard the U.S.-Mexico border, he signed up to stop people from sneaking in.

Just back from a weekend along the California-Mexico border repairing border fence and spotting border crossers, the 36-year-old water quality technician from Napa is forming a Northern California Minuteman chapter.

"This country is the United States," Clark said. "I mean, countries are defined by borders. Every other country in the world defends their borders and has people on their borders and doesn't allow illegal immigration."

The Minuteman Civil Defense Corps Inc. is an outgrowth of the original Minuteman Project, a small gathering on the Arizona border in April 2005 that aimed to guard against illegal border crossing, garnering international media attention.

Twenty-three chapters have formed across the country, and last week, Clark secured funding from an anonymous donor in Farmington, N.M., to start one more.

"I believe I'm doing the right thing and I'm a nonviolent person," Clark said, adding that he expects some resistance to the Minutemen in the Bay Area. A quarter of the participants in a recent monthlong Minuteman camp near Boulevard on the California border came from Northern California, and Clark said he knows 15 to 20 people who would join a local group.

Fund raising for the border-control group has risen since large pro-immigrant marches began in March, said Minuteman spokeswoman Connie Hair, going from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of dollars nationally. When the group secures its tax-exempt status, specific fund-raising numbers will become public.

While the movement has become well known, it has been widely criticized as well.

President Bush warned against vigilantism before the original Minuteman Project began in Arizona last year. The Mexican government decried the effort and immigrant advocates have protested and monitored the presence of the Minutemen along the border.

"They've made their language more moderate to make the tent wider," said Isabel Alegria, communications director for the California Immigrant Welfare Collaborative. "But I have no question in my mind that the origins of the Minutemen are racist and anti-immigrant."

Clark first applied online last year to become a Minuteman but no one called him back. More recently he heard about the plan to build a fence on private property along the border and applied again. He paid $50 for a criminal background check and was vetted by California chapter President Tim Donnelly.

"Basically they are trying to make sure you are not a racist in any way, shape or form," Clark said. While some openly racist groups embraced the idea of a civilian border patrol, volunteers are quick to distance themselves from racist positions.

"The whole Hispanic thing is not what motivates me," said Anna Ford of San Jose, an official Minuteman who spent April packing a pistol and radio, keeping an eye out for people walking across from Mexico into remote Boulevard. "For me, we don't know the nature of the people coming across."

Ford and many Minutemen, including founders Chris Simcox and Jim Gilchrist, say the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon spurred them to do something about border security.

Yet frustrations with illegal immigration and with immigrants in general are major factors in their thinking as well.

"Now, five years after 9/11 we are strip-searching Caucasian grandmothers at the airport and we have a wide-open border," said Donnelly, head of the California Minuteman chapter.

Donnelly, a salesman from Twin Peaks, near Lake Arrowhead, said his work with the Minutemen was motivated by the terrorist attacks, but he also traces it to the arrival of immigrant workers in his town, initially brought in to cut trees.

"All of a sudden our whole community changed," he said.

Clark, who speaks Spanish with his two sons and has traveled extensively in South America, said he finds himself hankering for the "good old days."

"The Day of Non-Inmigrantes, that day you know, what it reminded me of, it reminded me of the good old days," Clark said of the May 1 general strike and boycott in which many Latinos skipped work and shopping in protest. "I went shopping at Safeway and there was three checkers open and there was one person, two people in each line, I just flowed right through there, it was great."

Clark met his wife while traveling in Chile in 1996. They corresponded for a while and then he applied for her to come visit and was denied twice. After several years, he successfully applied for a fiancee visa and the two married before the 90-day limit.

She declined an interview.

Clark said his Minuteman chapter, which he hopes to launch in a month, will recruit for the border effort -- the group plans to build its own fence if the federal government does not send troops to guard the border by Memorial Day. But it also will monitor day labor sites, taking down license plate numbers and posting on the Internet the names of people who use day laborers.

Clark, who likens his activity to the Boston Tea Party, has coined the phrase "no taxation with illegal immigration" to show his opposition to paying for services that undocumented immigrants may utilize.

"It's a message to President Bush that, hey, we're down here doing a job that the U.S. government should be doing."

Minutemen Aim to Build Ariz. Border Fences

 A civilian border-patrol group said Tuesday that it plans to build two short security fences on a ranch in southern Arizona, the busiest illegal entry point on the U.S.-Mexico border.

Chris Simcox, a leader in the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps, said last month that the group would break ground on the fence unless the White House deployed U.S. troops to the border by May 25 and endorsed more secure fencing.

 "We are not anticipating that the White House will make any effort in the next 2 1/2 weeks as far as putting troops on the border," Minuteman spokeswoman Connie Hair said.

The group initially plans to erect two parallel 15-foot steel-mesh fences, which will be from 50 to 150 feet long. An unpaved road will run between the fences.

Hair declined to reveal the location of the fences out of concern the project could be a target for harassment or retaliation.

Todd Fraser, a U.S. Border Patrol spokesman in Washington, said the agency has no position on such fencing.

"If private citizens want to construct something on their property ... who is the Border Patrol to say they can't do it?" Fraser said.

Plans call for the fence to be constructed using an Israeli design.

On the south side facing Mexico, a 6-foot deep trench will keep vehicles from crashing through the fencing. Behind that, coiled and razor-edged barbed wire will be placed in front of a 15-foot steel mesh fence angled outward at the top to make climbing more difficult. The second fence will be built on the other side of the road.

Video cameras will be mounted between the fences and monitored from home computers.

Other Minuteman groups have also undertaken fencing projects.

About 200 Minuteman volunteers began building a 6-foot barbed wire fence last month along a quarter-mile of rugged terrain about 50 miles east of San Diego. It connected to an existing 12-foot high government-built fence.

Ariz. Posse to Round Up Illegal Immigrants

 GILA BEND, Ariz. (AP) -- Four Mexican men sit in the dirt with their wrists bound, shoulders hunched and eyes lowered to avoid the glare of the rising sun.

The immigrants had been on their way to build a dairy farm in this town about an hour southwest of Phoenix. But after a traffic stop for a faulty brake light, members of a sheriff's task force targeting human and drug smugglers found they were not U.S. citizens. Now they were bound for federal custody.

Beginning Wednesday, more illegal immigrants coming through Maricopa County could meet the same fate as the sheriff's department beefs up its efforts to find illegal immigrants.

A 250-member posse that will operate similarly to the anti-smuggler task force will patrol the area for illegal immigrants who pay smugglers to cross through Arizona, the busiest illegal entry point along the 2,000-mile U.S.-Mexico border.
   
   

The posse will be made up of existing sheriff's deputies and members of the department's 3,000-member posse reserve of trained, unpaid volunteers.

The four illegal immigrants pulled over Monday will be turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and sent back to Mexico. But those that are captured by the posse may end up in jail, charged under a state law that has been used against more than 100 illegal immigrants in Maricopa County this year.

The law made human smuggling a state crime in Arizona - it was already a federal crime - allowing local law enforcement agencies to arrest suspected smugglers. It was meant to crack down on smugglers, but under a disputed interpretation, County Attorney Andrew Thomas argues the law can be applied to the smuggled immigrants themselves.

Thomas maintains illegal immigrants who pay smugglers to enter the United States are committing conspiracy to smuggle and can therefore be prosecuted under the state law.

The sheriff's office began arresting illegal immigrants under that interpretation in March, and with the new posse, will continue doing so by patrolling desert areas and main roadways in the southwestern part of the county.

"I'm going to catch as many as I can and throw them in my jail," said Sheriff Joe Arpaio. "And the jails are not that nice."

It remains to be seen whether a judge will uphold the smuggling law as applicable to illegal immigrants. Lawyers for some arrested illegal immigrants have filed motions to have the charges dismissed.

A Los Angeles attorney brought into the case by the Mexican Consul General's Office in Phoenix filed another motion claiming Thomas and Arpaio are violating state and federal law and are using the conspiracy charges to control illegal immigration, which is the federal government's job.

Arpaio said the motions don't worry him.

"I get sued when I go to the toilet. You think I'm worried about it?" he said. "If they think I'm going to slow down because of these threats, I've got news for them - I'm not going to slow down. I'll do more of it."

Alfredo Gutierrez, a Hispanic activist and former Democratic state senator, called Thomas' interpretation of the law and Arpaio's use of it "political pranks."

"Every act like this contributes to the angst and anger and desperation in our community," Gutierrez said.

Elias Bermudez, president of the pro-immigrant group Inmigrantes Sin Fronteras, or Immigrants Without Borders, questions the legality of the immigration posse itself.

"It is racial profiling," he said. "They don't follow guys that are blond and blue-eyed."

Bermudez said Arpaio is "a good criminal sheriff, but he needs to go out there and find criminals. He wants to go after the poor, undocumented immigrant who is hungry and thirsty in the desert. That is totally inhumane."

Hispanics account for half of U.S. population growth between 2004 and 2005

 Hispanics continue to be the country's fastest-growing minority, accounting for almost half of the national population growth between 2004 and 2005, census figures released today show.

The boom is part of profound demographic changes in the United States, where one-third of residents now identify themselves as minorities. The minority population reached 98 million in 2005, or 33 percent of the country's 296.4 million inhabitants.

 Hispanics numbered 42.7 million, the census data show. From 2004 and 2005, their numbers grew by 3.3 percent, a spike fueled by 800,000 births and 500,000 new Hispanic immigrants. Blacks represent the second largest minority group, at 39.7 million, followed by Asians, with 14.4 million, according to the census report.

In South Florida, grass-roots leaders hope to parlay their growing numbers into votes in the November election, and they emphasize how a growing but diverse political and economic force is little understood.

"We keep thinking of Hispanics as a monolith, but the variety and differences among Hispanic cultures is quite tremendous," said Josie Bacallao, president of the Hollywood-based Hispanic Unity of Florida.

The agency, which provides social services to Hispanics throughout Broward County, received 400 calls or visits in February, the latest month for which information is available. Many who seek help at Bacallao's facility are Colombian or Venezuelan immigrants uprooted by civil unrest in their countries

They have sharply different needs than Hispanics in the largely Cuban-American population of Miami-Dade County and the growing, Mexican day laborer community of Palm Beach County, Bacallao said.

"There are over 20 nationalities represented among Hispanics," she said. "To clump them all together would be like clumping every English speaker together."

Growth in South Florida in recent years has reflected the Hispanic boom nationally.

In 2004, there were 369,467 Hispanics in Broward County, up from 272,652 in 2000. In Palm Beach County, the number of Hispanics increased from 140,675 to 192,272 over the same period.

Business owners in Palm Beach County say they've observed the emergence of a Hispanic business community where one did not exist before. Increasingly, restaurants, shops and professional offices are catering to the growing numbers of white-collar Hispanics moving into affluent neighborhoods in western areas, said Silvia Garcia, president of the Palms West Chamber of Commerce.

"The population's growth up here is amazing. I used to have to travel to Miami if I wanted Hispanic culture. It's here now," said Garcia, a Wellington resident who lives in the community of Olympia. She is a fan of the 2-year-old Cuban restaurant Don Ramon in Wellington.

"You see not only restaurants, but people at all professional levels including doctors and attorneys," Garcia said. "Hispanics have established a presence here."

On the political front, Hispanics have made their numbers felt in the immigration reform battle as protesters clogged streets and walked off jobs. Local advocates say the population growth won't necessarily translate into votes that could tip the scales in favor of Hispanics on immigration and other issues. The mix of illegal immigrants unable to vote and legal immigrants who are unfamiliar with the civic process poses a challenge, said Alvaro Fernandez, who runs the Florida office of the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project. "It's a constant battle," Fernandez said.

The group hopes to achieve a high voter turnout for the November mid-term and gubernatorial elections. More than 60 percent of all registered Latino voters in Florida turned out for the 2004 presidential election, he said.

Diversity can make it difficult to achieve common political goals, Fernandez said. As the Hispanic population grows, he and others say, so does the need to understand divisions and nuances. "Dominicans don't see things the way Puerto Ricans do. When you talk about Latinos, you have a bunch of different countries involved and each group has its own thing going."

Officials disclaim Bulletin 'tipping' report

U.S. Customs and Border Protection is refuting a Daily Bulletin report that the U.S. Border Patrol provided information to the Mexican government about the whereabouts of civilian border watch groups.

 "Today's report by the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin, `U.S. tipping Mexico to Minuteman patrols,' is inaccurate," read the statement issued Tuesday evening. "Border Patrol does not report activity by civilian, non-law enforcement groups to the government of Mexico."

Kristi Clemens, a spokeswoman for the Department of Homeland Security and Customs and Border Protection, would not elaborate on the agency's statement other than to say the U.S. gives information to Mexican officials under the rules of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations of 1963, which provides foreign nationals being detained by a government the right to consular access.

"This is the same agreement that protects United States citizens when they travel to foreign countries," according to the statement.

An August 2005 document, "Third Report on the Activities of Vigilantes" -- posted on Mexico's Secretary of Foreign Relations Web site -- suggests U.S. officials were giving out more details than required by the Vienna Convention. Part of that information was the location of U.S. citizens participating in volunteer border patrols.

The Daily Bulletin reported on the contents of that document and two others on the Mexican Web site in a story published in Tuesday's editions.

Mexican consulates also went beyond the boundaries of the Vienna Convention, asking U.S. Border Patrol officials to provide them with information on "vigilantes" operating along the U.S. border, according to the August 2005 document.

Some of the information cited in the Mexican document originally was given only to U.S. Border Patrol and law enforcement officials, border watch organizers said.

"Nobody but law enforcement and Border Patrol knew where we were at," said Andy Ramirez, chairman of the Chino-based nonprofit group Friends of the Border Patrol. "So how is our base address on a Mexican government document dated last August? Nobody, not even media, had this information."

Ramirez said he revealed the location of his base camp only to local and federal officials. The Mexican document gives the exact location of his group's site, which was on private property near San Diego.

According to Ramirez, the group had no encounters at that site with undocumented migrants, which would have been the only cause for that information to be revealed under the Vienna Convention.

On Monday, Mario Martinez, a U.S. Customs and Border spokesman, told the Daily Bulletin that when illegal immigrants are apprehended in the U.S., they have the right, under the Convention, to be represented by their country's consulate office and to information regarding their apprehension.

Information contained in a Border Patrol agent's field report, which is filed when a person is caught, would reveal the location of the detainee and therefore the area where the volunteer group is operating, Martinez said.

Martinez did not deny that information on the border volunteers was being shared with the Mexican government. He added that the group's whereabouts also were identified by numerous media outlets.

However, the Mexican report also contains specific information on civilian groups operating much farther inside the United States.

For example, the document notes that 50 Minuteman volunteers work in Chicago, focusing mainly on employers who hire illegal immigrants.

Minuteman volunteers said specific information -- such as the number of volunteers and their plans -- could have been provided only by law enforcement officials at that time. The document credits the various Mexican consul general offices in the U.S. with providing the information to the Mexican Foreign Secretary for the reports.

"How did they know the number of volunteers in Chicago? And why should the Mexican government care?" asked Connie Hair, spokeswoman for the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps in Washington, D.C.

The three reports on the Mexican Web site documented the activities of the civilian groups based on concerns the Mexican government had about volunteer patrols on the border in 2005, said Rafael Laveaga, spokesman for the Mexican Embassy in Washington, D.C.

"The Border Patrol does not report activity of the Minutemen to the Mexican consulate," Laveaga said. "But it's all a matter of perception. If a migrant requests to have counsel, which is their right under the Vienna Convention, then the information is provided to the counsel."

Throughout the Mexican government's reports on "vigilantes," it is noted that Mexican consulates in the U.S. contacted Border Patrol officials seeking U.S. cooperation in reporting instances of civilians monitoring the border. Among such requests:

The Mexican consul in Presidio, Texas, asked the Marfa Sector's Border Patrol chief to alert them if the U.S. detected any volunteer activity.

In Phoenix, consulate officials asked the Border Patrol to notify them if civilian groups apprehended any undocumented migrants so consulate representatives could interview them.

In San Diego, the document referred to a meeting with Border Patrol Chief Darryl Griffen stating that "Mr. Griffen reiterated to the undersecretary his promise to notify the General Consul right away when the vigilantes detain or participate in the detention of any undocumented migrant."

"It appears the border reports are the tip of the iceberg," said Chris Simcox, founder of the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps, which began patrolling the border last April.

Such requests from Mexico, and U.S. officials acquiescing to them, are not new, say Border Patrol agents.

Scott James, a former Tucson agent, resigned after eight years of service in February, citing a lack of support for agents by the Department of Homeland Security.

He said that U.S. Border Patrol officials provided office space inside their headquarters to Mexican consulate officials, allowed the consulate to dictate the agents' activities, and gave the consulate information on ongoing investigations.

Such courtesies were not extended to consulate offices of other countries, James said.

Dobbs to President Bush: Do you take us for fools?
CNN anchor says administration following 'absurd' policies on border security, illegals

Outspoken CNN anchor Lou Dobbs is thrashing President Bush and senators for continuing to follow what he calls "absurd policies on both issues of border security and illegal immigration," and asks the rhetorical question, "How dumb do you all think we are?"

The scathing remarks come amid this week's report that U.S. officials are tipping of the Mexican government as to the positions of the Minutemen, private American citizens looking to stop the ongoing invasion of illegal aliens across the border.

"President Bush continues to push his guest-worker program and amnesty for anywhere between 11 million and 20 million illegal aliens, and he insists still that nothing less than what he calls comprehensive immigration reform is acceptable," says Dobbs.

"And the lies keep coming from both political parties. This president is not enforcing the immigration laws enacted by Congress, and this Congress is failing in its duty of oversight to demand that those laws be followed. Only a fool, Mr. President, Sen. Kennedy, Sen. McCain, would believe you when you speak of new legislation. You don't enforce the laws now. Would you do so if the law were more to your liking? Would you secure our borders and ports? Would you halt illegal immigration? Those are rhetorical questions, only, I assure you. The answers are obvious; obvious because of your conduct."

Addressing the president, Dobbs says up to 3 million illegal aliens continue to cross our border with Mexico each year, with enforcement against illegal employers of illegal aliens in this country all but nonexistent.

"How do you explain that the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents have all but ended their investigations and inspections of employers that hire illegal aliens? Again, only a rhetorical question, because we all know the answer," Dobbs said.

The CNN anchor goes on to state the "official record," noting only 318 employers out of five and a half million in the U.S. have been fined for hiring illegals since 2001. In 2004, only three employers were fined.

"That is a dismal record, Mr. President, as dismal as the fact that the number of ICE agents assigned to enforce immigration laws in the workplace has declined from only 240 back in 1999 to now less than 100," Dobbs said.

He lays blame for the lack of border security and illegal immigration squarely on the shoulders of "two political parties that are beholden to corporate America, the largest employers of illegal aliens, and the leadership of both parties that are selling out American citizens in search of cheap labor and political advantage. How dumb do you all think we are? Again, that's only a rhetorical question."

Dobbs says he'll suggest on his television show in the coming days that "the leadership of both the Republican and Democratic parties begin to take some notice of our laws and our expectations that those laws be enforced," as well as reminding them they represent all U.S. citizens, and not just corporate America and special interests.

Dobbs has been making headlines in recent weeks, coming under fire by groups not opposed to illegal immigration.

As WND reported, hosts on a leftist radio station in Los Angeles have sponsored a contest that will reward the first illegal alien who names his or her new baby after Dobbs.

Meanwhile, an "Ax AOL" campaign was organized last month by defenders of illegal aliens to target Dobbs.

"Why AOL?" asks one of the promoters of the campaign rhetorically. "Lou Dobbs is the number one money maker for CNN so he is not going anywhere as long as he makes money for CNN and right now he is making a ton of money for CNN bashing 'illegal immigration.' CNN is owned by Time Warner and Time Warner also owns AOL, which is being extensively promoted to increase its value as witnessed last week by selling 5 percent of AOL stock to Google. This 5 percent cost Google $1 billion setting a benchmark value for AOL stock. The Google-AOL deal gives AOL a valuation of $20 billion. Billionaire Time Warner shareholder Carl Icahn who controls 3 percent of Time Warner shares has been organizing a proxy battle for control of Time Warner wants to sell AOL."

Mexicans paid $ 1.8 b in bribes: study

Reuters

Mexico City, May 10: Six years after Mexicans kicked out a government seen as corrupt, public graft is still widespread, and people paid an estimated $ 1.8 billion to traffic cops, city hall clerks, garbage collectors and other officials last year, according to a study.

Mexicans paid bribes — known in Mexico as ‘mordidas’ or ‘little bites’ — 10 per cent of the time they dealt with government officials last year, according to a study by the Mexican Chapter of Transparency International.

This included run-ins with police, applying for permits and even having mail delivered, and the group estimated Mexicans paid out about $ 1.8 billion last year.

When Mr Vicente Fox became the President of Mexico in 2000, he ended 71 years of rule by the Institutional Revolutionary Party, or PRI, which critics say was riddled with nepotism, theft and other abuses of power. Mexicans had expected Mr Fox’s administration to bring a reduction in public corruption.

The rate last year compared to bribery 9 per cent of the time in a 2003 study and 11 per cent in 2001, Transparency Mexico head, Mr Federico Reyes told reporters. No figures were collected before then.

Minutemen hit D.C.
Rally at Capitol to end cross-country caravan

Members of the Minuteman Project will stage a rally at the U.S. Capitol today to celebrate the end of a cross-country caravan meant to protest the flow of illegal aliens across the border.

"This is a Trojan horse – a covert invasion," Jim Gilchrist, founder of the Minuteman Project, said of illegal immigration.

The caravan began in Los Angeles May 3, and participants have been holding rallies in several states along the way. The caravan's "official pace car" is a 1970 Mercury Cougar dubbed "The Spirit Of Allegiance."

The final rally is scheduled for 11 a.m. today at the park on the Senate side of the Capitol.

Prominent national speakers at the kick-off rally in L.A. included WND columnist Rev. Jesse Lee Peterson, the founder and president of BOND – the Brotherhood Organization of A New Destiny, and social activist Ted Hayes.

Addressing the rally, Peterson commented, "Illegal immigration is having a devastating effect on the black community. African Americans are being put out of jobs and out of homes."

A rally also occurred May 6 in Crawford, Texas, home to President Bush's ranch.

"We are doing what the original Minutemen would have wanted us to do," Gilchrist told WND. "We are bringing the message to Washington."

According to its website, the Minuteman Project hopes to "bring national awareness to the decades-long careless disregard of effective U.S. immigration law enforcement."

A recent poll indicates concern about illegal immigration is now the No. 2 issue among Americans, next to the war in Iraq.

Gilchrist, who is being talked about as a 2008 presidential candidate, believes that by Election Day in November, "voters will show conclusively that illegal entry by foreigners on U.S. soil and the issue of 'guest worker amnesty' is at least as important to the American people as the war in Iraq."

Bush to Speak About Immigration on Monday

WASHINGTON (AP) - President Bush plans to address the nation Monday night on the immigration debate, trying to build momentum for legislation that could provide millions of illegal immigrants a chance to become American citizens.

The White House said it was seeking time from television networks for the president's remarks at 8 p.m. EST. Bush is to speak from the Oval Office and his address is expected to run less than 20 minutes.

"This is crunch time," Tony Snow, the new White House press secretary said Friday at his first off-camera, or informal, briefing.

On Thursday, Senate leaders reached a deal to revive a broad immigration bill that had appeared doomed just several weeks ago.

Key to the agreement is who will be negotiating a compromise with the House, which last December passed an enforcement-only bill that would subject the estimated 11 million to 12 million illegal immigrants in the United States to felony charges as well as deportation.

Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., said the Senate will send 14 Republicans and 12 Democrats to negotiate with the House, with seven of the Republicans and five Democrats coming from the Judiciary Committee. The remaining seven Republicans will be chosen by Frist and remaining seven Democrats chosen by Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev.

Sheriffs: Don't make us immigration cops
Rancher says securing border everyone's job



Ron White sees two kinds of illegal immigrants on his ranch south of town.
There are the dozens each day who simply pass through. They are a nuisance.
But others, White says, are a threat - like the group that tried to order him off his horse, or the smugglers who cut his fences every full moon.
The distinction between trespassers and violent criminals is critical to Pima County Sheriff Clarence Dupnik, who says he doesn't have the manpower to enforce federal immigration law while also solving murders and investigating robberies along the border.
The robberies are committed largely by bandits preying on people walking north to find work.
Dupnik says he will turn down any extra money to fight border crime if it requires him to become an immigration cop. His concerns are echoed by southern Arizona's other sheriffs, and by a coalition of 25 border sheriffs from Texas to California, as Congress considers measures that could shift more immigration-enforcement responsibilities to local lawmen.
"We are literally overwhelmed trying to provide service to the people of Pima County," Dupnik said.
In one week in April, agents in the U.S. Border Patrol's Tucson sector made more than 12,000 apprehensions. That's six times Dupnik's entire jail capacity. Most are quickly returned to Mexico.
The people headed north to find jobs draw predators: thugs who rob them, beat them up or worse.
White, who owns a 2,000-acre spread about 10 miles south of Tucson, questions whether any sheriff would really turn down federal money.
Of immigration enforcement, he said, "I don't believe it's a federal responsibility; it's a responsibility of every agency in the country."
White, 60, who has been confronted by large groups of immigrants, is convinced people are smuggling drugs across his land and has started wearing a pistol on his hip and carrying a rifle in a saddle scabbard when he rides his ranch, repairing the eight miles of fence cut at least monthly by someone he suspects is a drug smuggler.
White feels no animosity for most of those who enter the United States looking for work, though they litter his ranch with discarded clothing, backpacks and empty water jugs.
White moved to the ranch about 10 years ago.
"When I moved out here we'd get five to 10 (immigrants) a month," White said. "When they started talking about amnesty prior to the 2004 election it jumped to 50 to 100 a day."
Now, White said, "My wife and my grandchildren can't even leave the house and go out for a walk in the country and I can't even ride the fence line on my ranch without an arsenal."
White said he started packing weapons after being confronted several times by large groups over the past two years, and that some of them tried to order him off his horse. He refused, and rode away.
Before that, "I never carried a gun in my life," he said.
"I've never hurt anybody in my life, but, my God, we're scared to death."
White said every month, about the time of a full moon, someone leads a string of pack horses across his land, cutting fences on the north and south sides of the ranch.
White said he suspects the trespasser is a drug smuggler and that the cut fences cost him $15,000 to $20,000 a year in lost cattle.
White said he feels badly for the struggling migrants, some of whom have been victimized by border criminals.
"I've talked to some of them. They say they've been robbed by other illegals," White said.
"That's our responsibility, that's our problem," Dupnik said of such violent crimes. But that violence is compounded by the failure to secure the border in the first place, he said.
"They attack and rob and assault and murder them along the border," Dupnik said.
"I feel sorry for people who come over here to get a job and send money home so their families can survive."
Dupnik said he has no philosophical problem with arresting people for crossing the border illegally.
Dupnik's budget this year is $95 million and he estimated $11.4 million of that will be eaten up by border crimes, including the $3.5 million cost of housing them at the Pima County Jail, which is part of the Sheriff's Department.
The average daily jail population last year was 1,874 prisoners, some 200 of whom were from Mexico, said Corrections Lt. Michael Schlueter.
In Yuma County, Sheriff Ralph Ogden cited an increase in robberies of illegal immigrants.
In 2004 there were 10 robberies with 25 victims, in 2005 eight robberies with 56 victims and by March 13 there were nine robberies with 128 victims, said Yuma sheriff's Capt. Eben Bratcher.
Bratcher estimated Yuma County has three to four border-related homicides a year.
Despite the border crime problems, Ogden said he also would turn down federal money if it obligated him to enforce immigration laws.
"We're not prepared to become border patrolmen, nor do we want to," Ogden said.
In Cochise County, "drug smuggling is a big concern," said Carol Capas, a spokeswoman for Sheriff Larry Dever.
"You have that propensity for someone to become violent to protect that cargo," Capas said.
Dever said, "I'm not interested in becoming an immigration officer, but I am interested in securing the peace of the neighborhood."
Santa Cruz County's border crime problem runs more to trespassing, littering and burglaries for food and clothing, said Sheriff Tony Estrada.
Most illegal immigrants there want to get north without attracting attention, he said.
Farther away from the border, Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio launched a posse yesterday to fight illegal immigration.
Under a state anti-smuggling law, people in the country illegally can be charged with smuggling themselves in, the county attorney there has ruled.
"I'm not going to turn these people over to federal authorities so they can have a free ride back to Mexico," said Arpaio. "I'll give them a free ride to the county jail."
However, Francisco Lara, a 28-year-old illegal immigrant arrested by Arpaio's deputies this week, was apparently quickly handed off to the feds.
"We come here to work," Lara told The Associated Press in Spanish as he sat by the side of the road waiting for federal authorities to take him away. "We're not criminals."

Phoenix-Area Posse Nets Just 1 Arrest

AVONDALE, Ariz. - Following a week of tough talk, a 250-member sheriff's posse that was assembled to catch illegal immigrants made just one arrest in its first desert search early Thursday.

The posse — made up of Maricopa County sheriff's deputies and trained volunteers — launched night patrols Wednesday in the desert and along major roads southwest of Phoenix.

Deputies attempted to pull over a pickup truck about 12:45 a.m. Thursday, but the truck took off in the desert and its 15 to 20 occupants scattered. Only one person was tracked down, despite night-vision equipment, spotlights and a helicopter.

"It just makes me angry," Sheriff Joe Arpaio said. "People say these are helpless people coming into the United States just to work, and yet when they see law enforcement, they run. If they were trying to obey the law, why are they running?"

Arpaio speculated that the night was slow because potential border crossers have heard about that the county is cracking down. He said the operation will continue.

Arpaio's posse is looking to arrest illegal immigrants under a new state law that allows local law enforcement to arrest and charge immigrant-smugglers with felonies. Sheriff's officials already have arrested 147 illegal immigrants and smugglers under the law.

A human-rights group is challenging County Attorney Andrew Thomas' contention that the law applies to illegal immigrants as well as immigrant smugglers.

BREAKING: 3rd restaurant owner arrested on immigration charges; restaurant in Missouri also raided



CEDAR FALLS --- A rental agreement and a car crash spiraled into an immigration investigation that led to a raid at Cedar Falls restaurant last month.

This according to court records unsealed today as federal charges were filed against Julio Zapala-Urbina, the third co-owner of Julio's Mexican Restaurant and Cantina.

Zapala, who owns 50 percent of the business and is its president and chairman, was charged with harboring and engaging in a practice of employing illegal aliens in U.S. District Court in Cedar Rapids.

He was arrested Wednesday night and appeared in a federal court in Kansas City, Mo., today, said Assistant U.S. Attorney Peter Deegan in Cedar Rapids.

Agents with the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement searched Julio's in Cedar Falls April 27, and co-owners Martha Lopez-Angel and Juan Manuel Lopez-Angel were arrested on immigration charges a week later.

Then on Wednesday, ICE officers raided another restaurant owned by Zapala, this one in St. Joseph, Mo., and found nine undocumented aliens. Zapala also owns a restaurant in Maryville, Mo.

Authorities seized $17,000 in cash during the Cedar Falls search and froze the restaurant's bank account, records state.

After the Cedar Falls raid, Zapala moved staff from his St. Joseph operation to keep the Cedar Falls restaurant running, records state.

"Businesses who knowingly employ illegal aliens are on notice that they will be criminally prosecuted," said Pete Baird, assistant special agent-in-charge of the ICE Office of Investigations in Kansas City.

"Using ICE's unique immigration and customs law enforcement authorities, we'll also make every effort to seize all assets that may be associated with the illegal activity," he said.

Julio's Mexican Restaurant and Cantina opened in the former Camp David steak house building in February.

Records show investigators became suspicious in March when Julio's employee Guadalupe Mendoza-Nava applied to live at Country Terrace Mobile Home Village in Cedar Falls. Mendoza listed his place of employment, but the Social Security number he used on the application was discovered to be invalid during a credit check.

Then on April 10, ICE agents detained two unnamed Julio's employees after they were involved in a traffic accident in Benton County.

Both said they were from Mexico and entered the United States illegally. They also said they weren't asked to show proof they were authorized to work in American and didn't complete any paperwork when they were hired. They said they were paid in cash.

Later in April, source working with ICE authorities approached co-owner Juan Lopez at Julio's, and Lopez told him could earn $580 in cash a week as a dishwasher.

Lopez also told the source he didn't need a Social Security Card or a Permanent Resident Alien Card to get the job and that he may be able to talk with other employees about obtaining bogus documents, records state.

The following day, the source worked a full day without showing any documentation and without filling out any paperwork,

The restaurant was raided April 27, and 12 workers were taken into custody.

Four days later --- on May 1 --- immigration agents returned and detained another undocumented Julio's employee, who is identified in records only as Subject No. 7. He said Zapala told him to travel to Iowa to help reopen the Cedar Falls restaurant after the raid, records state.

This wasn't Subject No. 7's first brush with authorities. He had been arrested by ICE agents in February in St. Joseph and placed on supervised release.

At the time, he had been working for Julio's in Missouri and told his manager about the arrest. He was allowed to return to work after showing a card that gives no official employment authorization, records state.

The Wednesday raid at Julio's in St. Joseph found nine undocumented workers who were taken into custody. Other than the nine, only Zapala, his girlfriend and another person were working at the business, records state.

The raids were part of the Department of Homeland Security's Secure Border Initiative.

Under SBI, Homeland Security seeks to gain operational control of the borders while re-engineering the detention and removal system to ensure that illegal aliens are removed from the country quickly and efficiently.

SBI also involves strong interior enforcement efforts, including enhanced worksite enforcement investigations and intensified efforts to track down and remove illegal aliens inside this country.

Pentagon Looks At Putting National Guard On The Border

The House of Representatives voted on Thursday to grant Secretary of Defense, Donald Rumsfeld, the authority to assign National Guard troops to patrol the Southern Border. The vote was 252 - 171 in favor of authorization.

    Paul McHale, the assistant secretary of defense for homeland defense, asked officials this week to come up with options for the use of military resources and troops — particularly the National Guard — along the border with Mexico, according to defense officials familiar with the discussions. The officials, who requested anonymity because the matter has not been made public, said there are no details yet on a defense strategy.

    The request comes as some Southern lawmakers met this week with White House strategist Karl Rove for a discussion that included making greater use of National Guard troops to shore up border control. Congress is poised to pass legislation this month that would call for additional border security, a new guest worker program and provisions opening the way to eventual citizenship for many of the estimated 11 million illegal immigrants in the country.

Lefties all seem to think that this authorization is akin to the end of life on this planet as we know it. What do you think the primary mission of the Army was in the beginning? To secure us from invasion that’s what. And what do you call an unauthorized influx of 11 million people crossing our southern border? An invasion is what I would call it..

    “The Texas delegation is very concerned about the border and are pushing urgency,” said Rep. Kevin Brady, R-Texas, who joined other Texas Republicans in a meeting with Rove this week. He said Rove was “very forthright” about border projects that Homeland Security is starting up, its current projects and what the needs are.

    Rep. Ken Marchant, R-Texas, who also attended the meeting, said the lawmakers left “very encouraged.”

    Currently, the military plays a very limited role along the borders, but some armed forces have been used in the past to help battle drug traffickers. National Guard units, meanwhile, have been used at time by Southern and Western governors to provide assistance at border crossings.

    Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano said the military help “is basically what she has been asking for,” spokeswoman Jeanine L’Ecuyer said. Napolitano has been asking the Pentagon to send more National Guard troops — but not regular military — to confront illegal immigration from Mexico. About 170 National Guard troops are helping in such efforts in the state now.

    Defense officials said they have been asked to map out what military resources could be made available if needed — including options for using the National Guard under either state or federal control. The strategy would also explore the legal guidelines for use of the military on domestic soil, the officials said.

The hoopla over the use of military forces on domestic soil is a bunch of crap. Here’s the thing, we can no longer accept unregulated violations of our southern border. This is both an immigration issue and a matter of national security. In a post 9/11 world, national security issues trump all other concerns. At the present time, under the present conditions, a terrorist can enter any number of countries in South or Central America and enter via our porous, largely unchecked southern border.

What would happen if a terrorist entered with a dirty bomb, made his way to Los Angeles and set it off? Millions of Americans would be contaminated without knowing and die of radiation sickness. LA would become a virtual wasteland. This is the problem of a reactionary policy as opposed to a pro-active policy.

    Under the Civil War-era Posse Comitatus Act, federal troops are prohibited from performing law enforcement actions, such as making arrests, seizing property or searching people. In extreme cases, however, the president can invoke the Insurrection Act, also from the Civil War, which allows him to use active-duty or National Guard troops for law enforcement. SOURCE

I consider the wholesale invasion of the United States by Mexico an insurrection. The President should authorize not only the National Guard, but Reserve and Active Component units of the US Army, Airforce, Navy, and Marine Corps as well as the Coast Guard to increase patrols already being done and supplement the border patrol.

Members of our armed forces should be deputized under the Insurrection Act as emergency Border Patrol Agents which would authorize them to arrest and detain these foreign invaders until they can be herded back into their own country like cattle. They walked in, they can walk out like in a cattle drive. Perhaps the long walks in the desert would be enough to dissuade them from attempting crossing again in the future.

Patrols by our military along the border should continue until the Great Wall of the United States is built and armed observation stations can be established. Permanent military guards should then man those stations and the Border Patrol would be free to patrol along the wall.

The wall should be built at least 50 meters north of the actual border to allow the Border Patrol to patrol in front of the wall. Perhaps a “fence” could be erected on the actual border to create a “no man’s land” patrol area.

But before we can get to that point we need to at least slow the “bleeding” so to speak. All this talk about pathways to legalization are all moot unless we can slow or stop the “bleeding”. If we keep bringing in illegals, pathways to legalization will just encourage more illegals to cross the border. We already know that they are crafty enough to obtain forged documents so that they can work, so what is to prevent them from finding ways to forge the documentation to prove that they have been here longer than they have just to obtain the status required to qualify for these disguised amnesty programs.

But I applaud the House for their insight into this problem. I just hope that the Pentagon can see the necessity for this program to go forward.

Minutemen, protesters square off at Capitol
Leader says illegals 'assembling to strip us of our rights'

Members of the Minuteman Project squared off with counter-protesters today at the end of a cross-country caravan meant to demonstrate against the flow of illegal aliens across the border.

Advocates for illegals chanted "go away" as the Minutemen warned the U.S. was in danger of being overrun by Mexicans if the Senate passes a bill giving millions a path to citizenship.

"They should be rounded up and deported, every single one of them," John Clark of the American Immigration Control Foundation told a cheering crowd, according to Reuters. "Leave them here and in 10 years this will not be the United States of America."

Nearby, behind a line of police, the counter-protesters chanted "Minutemen go away, immigrants are here to stay."

Minutemen founder Jim Gilchrist said the massive protests by illegals and their supporters in recent weeks underscored the growing problems the country faces from the estimated 11.5 to 12 million illegal immigrants now in the country, Reuters reported.

"They are not assembling to protect their rights. They are assembling to strip us of our rights," Gilchrist said.

The caravan began in Los Angeles May 3, and participants have been holding rallies in several states along the way. The caravan's "official pace car" is a 1970 Mercury Cougar dubbed "The Spirit Of Allegiance."

Prominent national speakers at the kick-off rally in L.A. included WND columnist Rev. Jesse Lee Peterson, the founder and president of BOND – the Brotherhood Organization of A New Destiny, and social activist Ted Hayes.

Addressing the rally, Peterson commented, "Illegal immigration is having a devastating effect on the black community. African Americans are being put out of jobs and out of homes."

A rally also took place May 6 in Crawford, Texas, home to President Bush's ranch.

"We are doing what the original Minutemen would have wanted us to do," Gilchrist told WND. "We are bringing the message to Washington."

According to its website, the Minuteman Project hopes to "bring national awareness to the decades-long careless disregard of effective U.S. immigration law enforcement."

A recent poll indicates concern about illegal immigration is now the No. 2 issue among Americans, next to the war in Iraq.

Gilchrist, who is being talked about as a 2008 presidential candidate, believes that by Election Day in November, "voters will show conclusively that illegal entry by foreigners on U.S. soil and the issue of 'guest worker amnesty' is at least as important to the American people as the war in Iraq."

Senators agree on 'amnesty' proposal

Senate leaders reached an agreement yesterday on immigration reform legislation that would strengthen border security but also would allow millions of illegal aliens who have been in the U.S. for two years or longer to apply for citizenship.
    Derided by conservatives as "amnesty," the proposal could be amended but senators on both sides of the aisle say they doubt it will be dramatically altered.
    "Senate Republicans are united in their commitment to an open and full debate on multiple amendments," said a statement from seven Republicans who represent the full spectrum of positions on immigration reform.
    "We are willing to put differences aside so we can get on with the important work to be done securing our borders and grappling with the 12 million illegal immigrants currently living in our country," said the group that included Majority Leader Bill Frist of Tennessee, Sen. John McCain of Arizona and Sen. John Cornyn of Texas.
    "We are also in agreement that efforts to curtail the debate prematurely will only derail this process. We call on Senate Democrats to allow an open debate and votes on this complex and challenging issue," the statement read.
    Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, with whom Mr. Frist has been negotiating for weeks, said he "welcomed" the return of the thorny bill to the floor.
    "America's immigration system is broken, and our national security depends on Republicans and Democrats finding common ground to fix it," he said yesterday. "The assurances I have received from Senator Frist make me hopeful we can finally move forward on real comprehensive reform."
    While yesterday's agreement will unstick the Senate bill, high hurdles remain in the House, which last year approved a much tougher bill that dealt only with strengthening the border and enforcing the federal immigration laws already on the books.
    Debate on immigration legislation collapsed last month after Democrats refused to allow amendments. They accused Republicans opposed to amnesty of trying to sabotage the bill. They also refused to approve any legislation without guarantees that House negotiators wouldn't throw out all the "amnesty" provisions in the Senate version in favor of the security-only House bill.
    Under yesterday's deal, there was no set limit on the number of amendments that could be offered but earlier in the week Republicans said they are committed to 20 Republican amendments and 10 from Democrats.
    In return, 19 of the 26 senators who will negotiate with the House on the final bill will be people Mr. Reid wanted. Already, 12 members of the Senate Judiciary Committee have been selected as conferees, largely fulfilling Mr. Reid's request that the committee be responsible for negotiating with the House. On top of that, Mr. Reid will pick seven more as-yet-unnamed conferees, as will Mr. Frist.
    Rep. Tom Tancredo, Colorado Republican, said yesterday's developments did not bode well.
    "By caving in to the Democrats this morning, Bill Frist pushed the Senate towards the biggest illegal alien amnesty in American history," he said. "It is a sad day for legal immigrants who embrace this country by following our laws, and it is a sad day for all Americans who are concerned about our national and economic security. Frist has put the Senate on a collision course with the House."
    The executive branches of both the U.S. and Mexico applauded the deal.
    "We congratulate the Senate on reaching agreement and we look forward to passage of a bill prior to Memorial Day," said an optimistic Dana Perino, White House spokeswoman.
    Mexico's foreign secretary told reporters in a statement that the agreement was a "positive step toward the approval of a migration accord."

California governor skeptical of using Guard troops on border

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who has urged Washington to toughen border security, said Friday he had misgivings about mobilizing state National Guard troops to help secure the nation's southern boundary.

"Going the direction of the National Guard, I think, is maybe not the right way to go," Schwarzenegger told reporters after a news conference on the state budget.

As part of a proposed overhaul of the nation's immigration laws, President Bush is considering plans to shore up the border by using National Guard troops paid for by the federal government.

Schwarzenegger suggested that Guard troops returning from service in Iraq should be able to go back to their jobs, not head to the border.

"We should let them go to work," he said.

The governor's positions on immigration are closely watched because the Austrian-born former movie star is the best-known immigrant in U.S. politics, and California has more illegal immigrants than any other state — an estimated 2.4 million.

Schwarzenegger has said he favors a temporary worker program but provided few details about how such a plan should work. He does not support blanket amnesty but also thinks it is impractical to consider deporting millions of illegal immigrants.

Oregon sheriff takes on tack on immigration diplomacy


PENDLETON, Ore. - Out of ideas and low on cash one cold morning, the man with the biggest badge in town put his meaty fingers on a keyboard and tapped out a letter to the leader of Mexico.

"Dear Precidente (sic) Fox," it began.

"My name is John Trumbo. I am Sheriff of Umatilla County in northeastern Oregon, United States of America." Illegal immigrants "from your country" who committed crimes here, the letter said, cost Americans lots of money.

Last year, more than 360 of "your citizens" spent time in jail "at a cost of $63 a day which equates to a request for payment of $318,843," the letter concluded. "At this time, you will not be billed for medical, dental and transportation costs. Your prompt attention to this request will be very much appreciated."

Three months later, Trumbo reports, Vicente Fox still has not paid up. The Mexican president has issued no response, no installment payment, nada.

The silence has reverberated at the Umatilla County Justice Center, a complex of modular beige buildings set among rolling hills of wheat. Here, the influx of Mexican immigrants -- many of them illegal and a portion criminal -- has become an increasingly prickly issue. Trumbo's letter voiced the growing frustration of a region that has been compared to the California farmlands of the 1950s and 1960s -- a place going through a transition in racial demographics.

Between 1990 and 2000, Umatilla County's Hispanic population, including legal and illegal immigrants, jumped 114 percent to 11,400 people, according to the Census Bureau. This doesn't include thousands of seasonal workers who live here part of the year and many others who choose not to be counted.

About 70,000 people live in the county.

In towns such as Hermiston, Umatilla and Milton-Freewater, Hispanics occupy entire neighborhoods, and the beginnings of "Little Mexico" commercial areas have taken hold. The neighborhoods tend to be poorer, and many residents blame Hispanic immigrants for the region's gang and drug problems.

Public schools have become increasingly populated by Hispanics. In Milton-Freewater and Umatilla, with a combined enrollment of about 3,300, Hispanics make up half the student body. No one knows how many are children of illegal immigrants, because federal law prohibits schools from asking about parents' immigration status.

Undocumented residents have access to state and county services for drug and alcohol treatment, mental health, domestic violence and nutrition. While there's grousing about taxpayer money being used for these services, nothing ignites more anger than undocumented residents who end up in the criminal-justice system.

"They already broke the law once coming over here," says Pendleton resident Elaina Solomon, 49, an immigrant from Honduras who works as a legal assistant. "Then they commit murders and robberies while they're here. Why should we pay for their room and board at the jail? Why should we foot the bill?"

Trumbo's letter to Fox resonated with Solomon and many other county residents even as some in the Hispanic community privately grumbled.

To anyone who asked, Trumbo explained:

The county has a daily jail capacity of 252 inmates but can afford staff and services for only 135 inmates. The sheriff's office should have a minimum of 27 patrol officers but can fund only nine. Between 2 a.m. and 8 a.m. each day, no patrol officer is on duty.

"When people call the police, they expect to see the police," Trumbo says. "They see it on TV all the time. But there are times when I can't send anybody, because I don't have anybody because I don't have the money."

One reason, he says: the department spends much of its $6.5 million annual budget on apprehending and jailing illegal immigrants.

He has no problem with Hispanics personally, he says. "Some of my best friends," Trumbo says, "are Hispanic." He just wanted to tell someone, anyone, about the situation here.

The 56-year-old sheriff and native Oregonian speaks his mind largely without editing: "The reason why Hispanics come here is because white people are too damn lazy to bend down and do real work. It's a fact."

In the last 16 years, the Hispanic population in 20 of Oregon's 36 counties has as much as tripled. The Pew Hispanic Center estimates the number of illegal immigrants in the state has jumped to as many as 175,000, compared with 25,000 in 1990.

Many of them end up in places like Umatilla County, where they take the hardest farming jobs -- picking asparagus or pitching watermelon -- or work on assembly lines in food-processing factories.

The population increase has led to a corresponding rise in the number of undocumented immigrants who commit crimes. Trumbo says between nine and 15 of his jail beds are occupied each day by illegal immigrants from Mexico.

Among those in jail is Ever Alexis-Flores, 25, convicted in a 2004 murder-robbery near Hermiston. Alexis-Flores and four men broke into a remote house where as many as 12 farmworkers lay sleeping. The robbers, who knew the workers had been paid the previous night, took cash and cell phones and killed one worker and wounded his 16-year-old son.

The majority of jailed illegal immigrants are in for property crimes. One man arrested for burglary, Juan Flores-Romero, has been in the Umatilla County jail 20 times. Flores-Romero, 62, was deported in almost every instance.

Says Trumbo: "The old joke among the immigration agents who shuttled these guys back to Mexico was, 'I hope we make it back to Pendleton before they do.' "

It is a national problem. One Justice Department report estimates 270,000 illegal immigrants serve jail time every year, most in California, Arizona, Florida, Texas and New York. It costs the United States more than $1 billion a year, according to the Government Accountability Office.

In Trumbo's letter to Fox, the sheriff asked to be reimbursed for the basics, such as food, clothing and shelter. Not included were costs related to medical and dental services, transportation, legal defense and prosecution, all of which total millions of dollars each year just for Umatilla County.

"Of course, (Trumbo) didn't consult with us before he wrote the letter," says Umatilla County Commissioner Emile Holeman. "But if he consulted me, I would have said, 'Gosh, you should mail that.' "

Others found the sheriff's letter disturbing. Shelley Latin, an attorney who represents mostly low-income Hispanics, says Trumbo's letter hinted at a type of racism pervasive within local law enforcement.

"The implication is that Hispanics are the cause of the crime problems here," Latin says. "It suggests that if Hispanics were all taken away, we would suddenly be crime-free. That's just silly."

The Mexican consul general for Oregon, Fernando Sanchez Ugarte, who received a copy of the letter, says he doesn't know whether Fox will respond. Ugarte says he personally dismissed the letter as political posturing, not to mention racist. The sheriff, he says, "is pinpointing one ethnic group," and he's not sending letters to the presidents of all the other countries in the world.

"If a visitor from Switzerland does something wrong while visiting Umatilla County," Ugarte says, "will Mr. Trumbo send a bill to the leader of Switzerland? I don't think so."

At Magana's Barbershop in Hermiston, 28 miles away, Trumbo's letter was received with more venom. "It was a slap in the face," says owner and operator Martin Magana.

On this day, a half-dozen young men await haircuts in the one-room shop.

"Yeah, (Trumbo) was trying to be the hero to the Anglos," says Magana, 30, as he runs an electric shear over the center of a customer's head. The men in the room are all friends with one essential trait in common: At one point in their family lineage, someone immigrated to this region illegally.

"That's the thing," says Saul Olvera, 23, "we're all one family, one community. We're all legal in here," -- a few of the men snicker -- "but a lot of our relatives are still illegal."

Magana says there's a new fear among farmworkers in Umatilla County. The immigration debate roiling the nation, of which Trumbo's letter was just one salvo, has placed Hispanics on the lookout for those trademark pale-green vans that immigration agents use to round up illegal immigrants.

"I know people, they're starting to see those vans everywhere," he says.

It's paranoia, someone else says.

One of the men turns to a stranger in the group: "You're not INS, are you?"

Another man rises abruptly and heads toward the back door.

"Are you?"

Back at the Justice Center in Pendleton, Trumbo has made a copy of his latest letter. This one is to the local newspaper. In it, he recounts the 2004 murder-robbery near Hermiston. Without naming them, he writes that two of the convicted men, sentenced to 25 and 50 years, will end up costing Oregon taxpayers at least $2.2 million.

"Somebody's got to say, 'Enough is enough,' " he says.

As for Fox, the sheriff doubts he'll ever hear from him.

King returns from border patrol more committed to building fence


Congressman Steve King has just returned from a five-day trip to Arizona's border with Mexico. "It was a real eye-opener," King says. "One cannot get a feel for this without going down there and being in it."

King has been advocating construction of a fence along the U.S./Mexico border, and King says the drug trade he witnessed just reaffirmed his belief that a fence is what it will take to stop the flood of immigrants crossing the border.

"This is my second trip down to the border but this is the one that I learned the most at and the one that really causes me to take a look at this and see it from a different perspective on how many people are coming across the border illegally and how many drugs are a part of that," King says.

King was the only member of congress on this trip. He went with a "security detail" to meet with border patrol agents, some retired agents, and a group of fewer than two dozen Native Americans called the Shadow Wolves who are intercepting more drugs than the two-thousand border patrol agents in the area. When King was at the reservation one night, the Shadow Wolves caught a gang member with 180 pounds of marijuana hidden in his pick-up.

On another night, King happened upon the aftermath of a drug deal gone bad that led to a stabbing. The victim was brought over the border in a Mexican ambulance "that didn't even have a bandage in it" according to King. The man was transferred to an air ambulance and flown to a hospital in Tucson. On Tuesday, King visited the injured man in the hospital and talked with the hospital's administrators who told King they "lose about 14 million dollars a year" providing treatment to illegal immigrants.

King says a concrete fence must be built along the whole length of the U.S./Mexico border because his trip made him realize the number of border crossings are "far greater in number" than he thought, and the level of violence and the drug trade is much higher, too.

To those in his own Republican party who say the U.S. is not a country that builds walls but is a country that tears them down, King offers this response. "There is a 180 degree difference between a wall that's built to keep people in, which the Berlin Wall was, and a wall that's built to keep people out, which this would be," King says. "It's entirely moral to defend yourself from people who are pouring over your borders, that don't have respect for our sovereignty and who are brining billions of dollars of drugs into the United States."

There's a national wildlife refuge in the area of Arizona King visited, and he says a fence worked there to protect the endangered "lesser long-nosed bat." That species of bat lives in only four caves in the world, one of which illegal immigrants crossing the border in Arizona used as a hiding place. The bats left, according to King, so the National Park Service built a wrought-iron fence around the cave's entrance. King says the winged creatures moved back in the cave once the illegal immigrants were kept out. "A fence does work," King says. "It worked to keep the illegals out of the bat cave."

King says he spent about two days traveling to and from Arizona and about three days along what he estimates was about 450 miles of border. King says he went in sort of "undercover" fashion so he'd get the real story, not the sanitized version delivered to members of congress who climb into helicopters and fly over the area.

Gingrich: Republicans
'drifting toward disaster'
Warns Senate immigration bill
allows 36 million to stay in U.S.

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich is warning that the immigration bill favored by Senate Republicans will permit up to 36 million illegal aliens, as opposed to the 11 million being cited by proponents, to remain in the U.S. – a number that will make the average American "furious" when learned and will hurt the GOP.

"I am very worried that the Republican leadership in the Senate and potentially the White House are just going to end up very alienated from the vast majority of Americans on this issue," Gingrich told Human Events in an exclusive interview.. "The Senate bill is an absolute disaster."

Gingrich criticized the makeup of the conference committee, saying the agreement made between Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R.-Tenn.) and Minority Leader Harry Reid (D.-Nev.) "guarantees a bad bill." Under the terms outlined by Reid, Frist and Reid each get to appoint seven senators to the committee. Republicans will have seven more from the Judiciary Committee, whereas Democrats will only be able to send five from the committee.

"The Senate is drifting toward a disaster of the first order," Gingrich said. "The bill they're looking at is a bad bill. It violates, in almost every case, what the American people want."

Gingrich, who will appear on NBC's "Meet the Press" tomorrow, cited a recent poll released by Zogby and the Center for Immigration Studies showing overwhelming support – 65% to 30% – for the House bill, a measure that emphasizes enforcement.

Eighty-four percent of the poll's respondents wanted the government to prosecute employers who hire illegals and 86% agreed that federal dollars should be cut off to cities and states that refuse to enforce immigration laws. Nine out of 10 respondents favored making English proficiency a requirement to earn citizenship and 85% endorsed a voter-identity card to guarantee that only American citizens were casting ballots.

Gingrich disputed the oft-cited figure of 11 million illegal aliens who would be affected by any immigration reform bill, saying he believes the actual count would be three times greater.

"If there is an honest debate about how many million people will be given a chance to come to America under the Senate bill, we're told the number is between 30 million and 36 million people," he said. "When the average American learns that, they are going to be furious if the Senate Republicans allow that kind of bill out of the Senate.

"The Senate bill expands substantially who can be brought in as a member of the family," Gingrich noted. "So you take 11 million and add the other people, and we believe the real number is between 30 million and 36 million."

President Bush is scheduled to address the nation on immigration in a primetime speech Monday night.

"I look forward to the speech Monday night because I fervently hope the president is not going to side with the liberals in the Senate against the conservatives in the House, because no one in the president's base will understand that decision," Gingrich said.

"This is a great opportunity for the President to re-bond with the overwhelming majority of the American people. And the overwhelming majority of the American people say, ‘Put border security first.'"

Tucson Region
Protester sought in kicking

The Tucson Police Department is asking for the public's help in identifying a female protester who kicked an officer in the face during the April 10 pro-immigration rally.
After closely reviewing video footage from the rally, police have been able to single out the female who they say intentionally kicked Officer Nathan A. Tullgren, 26, as he was on the ground making an arrest, said Tucson police Chief of Staff Capt. Brett Klein on Friday.
Police say she could face a charge of aggravated assault on a peace officer.
According to Klein, Tullgren had just pulled a male off of another officer's back when he took the male down to the ground.
The woman, who is in her late teens to early 20s, then kicked Tullgren in the face, knocking off his hat.
After she kicked Tullgren, Officer Douglas C. Musick pushed the young woman away to prevent her from further injuring the officer and she fell over a bicycle, a police report stated.
She ran into the crowd before she could be arrested.
She was wearing a black or navy blue hooded sweatshirt, jeans, a black messenger bag and black-and-white Chuck Taylor Converse shoes.
At times, she had a red Che Guevara flag draped over her shoulders. She has black hair and a lip ring on her lower lip.
Meanwhile, the Tucson Police Officers Association said officers performed their jobs properly during the rally and a smaller counterprotest where a Mexican flag was burned.
Officers had to use pepper spray and arrested six people after protesters became angered by the burning of the flag. A man who is accused of burning the Mexican flag was arrested the following day.
Organizers of the pro-immigration rally and march have accused the officers of using excessive force and failing to perform their jobs. They have asked that an independent investigation be conducted into how police handled the rally and counterprotest.
Two reports this week by the Police Department said officers' actions, including several instances where force was used, were justifiable.

US senate expected to start immigration debate



The US senate is expected to start debating a compromise bill on immigration reform tomorrow.

There are fears that the new legislation would permanently exclude Irish immigrants from the opportunities offered to earlier Irish immigrants.

The President for the Irish Lobby for Immigration Reform has said this is the last and best chance for an estimated 50,000 undocumented Irish in the US to get legalised.

Speaking on 'This Week', Grant Lally said there is much support for Irish people in the United States to become legal.

Judiciary chairman holds key to immigration bills
Congressman's bullying style stirs fears in the Senate



WASHINGTON - It's fair to say that House Judiciary Committee Chairman James Sensenbrenner is not the most popular man on Capitol Hill.

Colleagues consider him smart, stubborn and ornery. His bullying style in final bill negotiations between the House and Senate has made some senators cringe and forced the White House to tread carefully.

But if President Bush wants an immigration reform bill out of Congress this year, he will have to deal with Sensenbrenner, author of the most punitive illegal immigration control bill in recent House history.

Sensenbrenner, 62, a Republican from Wisconsin, is a significant reason why the Senate has had trouble finishing its version of the immigration bill.

Before debating the finer details of a measure that would combine tough border security with a legalization program, senators argued over how to make their bill strong enough to withstand Sensenbrenner's expected opposition.

Conference makeup
Republican and Democratic leaders agreed last week to return to the immigration bill after announcing a 26-member negotiating team to the final House-Senate conference that includes 15 senators who support creating a citizenship path for illegal immigrants.

The White House, which leans toward the Senate bill, had been keeping its powder dry but announced late last week that Bush planned a nationwide address Monday on immigration.

The Senate and the White House are throwing a lot of firepower at Sensenbrenner, and for good reason.

"He has very strong views, and he knows the parliamentary system forwards and backwards," said Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Pat Roberts, R-Kansas. "He's a tough cookie."

Sensenbrenner chuckled recently after Democrats heaped praise on him for guiding to the House floor a 25-year extension of the Voting Rights Act. The landmark 1965 civil rights legislation requires that citizens be given equal access to ballots regardless of race, national origin or language proficiency — a right that seems at odds with his hard line on immigration.

"Everybody is all sweetness and light," he joked, in a rare chat with reporters. "Maybe it does show I am able to negotiate bipartisan compromise."

Perhaps he can, but will he? Senators can only wonder.

Intelligence overhaul
"I have watched bills pass the Senate with overwhelming majorities, and they end up in a conference with Chairman Sensenbrenner, where they are chewed to pieces," said Sen. Richard Durbin, D-Ill., who previously compared Senate negotiators to "cocker spaniels in a room full of pit bulls."

A case in point, Durbin said, was the 2004 intelligence overhaul law recommended by the 9/11 Commission.

Sensenbrenner rallied conservative House Republicans to block the bill because the final version deleted his immigration provisions, including one making it harder for illegal immigrants to get driver's licenses.

After telephone calls from Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney, Sensenbrenner relented on the condition that his provisions would be part of the first "must-pass" bill in 2005. The immigration provisions became law right on schedule.

Sensenbrenner came to Congress in 1979 and has headed the Judiciary panel since 2001.

Though he previously has engaged in high-profile battles, it is immigration that has brought him to prominence.

"Sensenbrenner" has appeared on signs at massive rallies staged across the nation in opposition to his bill that would jail people for "unlawful presence" in the United States. The bill also would raise fines on employers who knowingly hire illegal immigrants.

Sensenbrenner is outspoken about being annoyed by Mexico's criticisms of his bill, as often voiced by Mexico Foreign Secretary Luis Ernesto Derbez.

"If you Google me in the Mexican press, my name appears practically every time (Derbez) issues a press release. Now, if I did the same in Mexico City, under Article 33 of the Mexican Constitution, I could be summarily jailed," he said, referring to Mexican law that prohibits foreigners from participating in the political affairs of the country.

Border security
In recent weeks, as most senators have come to support an immigration bill that would eventually grant citizenship to most of the 12 million illegal immigrants in the United States and also create temporary worker visas, the chairman said nothing was "off the table."

But he has held to the view that the highest priority is strengthening U.S. borders.

"It is important to do the border security and the employer sanctions first. And if we stopped encouraging the flow of illegal immigrants across the border, then we can figure out what to do with the 11 million who are already here," he said.

With Congress facing election-year demands to fix immigration laws, some senators said party leaders, including Bush, will force the Senate and House, including Sensenbrenner, to compromise.

"I think there's enormous pressures now to try to get something done in a comprehensive fashion," said Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., a lead sponsor of the broad immigration bill. "And the (House) Speaker has been saying some good things about the guest worker program. So I hope we can work together."

Bush to press immigration reform in televised speech

 President George W. Bush will address Americans on the heated immigration debate Monday in a televised speech in which he may announce the deployment of troops to the border with Mexico to stop illegal immigration.

With his popularity at all-time lows, Bush will speak from the Oval Office in the White House as the Senate resumes debate on legislation that could lead to legalization of at least part of the estimated 11.5 million undocumented workers in the United States.

 According to US media, Bush will use the 8:00 pm (0000 GMT) speech to announce the deployment of troops to the border, a measure approved on Thursday in the House of Representatives as a way to halt the smuggling of drugs and people.

The immigration debate has divided Republicans ahead of legislative elections in November, as some call for the creation of a guest-worker program while others want tougher laws.

"I think members of the House will like what the president has to say on border security," a senior administration official told the Washington daily on condition of anonymity.

Bush's possible deployment of troops could help settle differences among his fellow Republicans.

"Congressional Republicans who back Bush's call for a guest-worker program and a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants say (the deployment) is precisely what they need to win over House conservatives," the Washington Post said Saturday.

The announcement of Bush's address coincided with a meeting Friday between Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and his Mexican counterpart, General Clemente Ricardo Vega, at the Pentagon's invitation, to discuss border security.

The differences between what the Senate means by "immigration reform" and what was passed in December by the House of Representatives highlights the strong differences within the Republican Party.

Under the leadership of Tom Tancredo of Colorado and James Sensenbrenner of Wisconsin, the House approved a law that would make unapproved entry to the United States a crime punishable with jail time. The bill also calls for the construction of a wall along about one third of the 3,000-kilometer (2,000-mile) border with Mexico.

Left out of the House bill, however, was Bush's guest-worker program, which would allow foreigners into the United States to fill temporary jobs, such as picking agricultural crops.

The Senate bill, on the other hand, would open the possibility of legal residency and citizenship to most of those in the United States without papers, under the bipartisan sponsorship of Democrat Ted Kennedy and Republican John McCain.

Once approved by their respective chambers, a conference committee of senators and representatives will hammer out a compromise version -- which will then need a final vote by both houses in a form that Bush will sign.

Settling on the makeup of that committee is what allowed the Senate debate to go ahead after more than a month of nationwide protests, marches, general strikes and a boycott.

Immigration reform, one of Bush's 2004 campaign promises, has triggered a tense debate in the United States, marked by a recent shouting match between opponents and defenders of undocumented workers outside Congress.

On Friday, it was the Americans of the Minuteman Project, a group patrolling the border, yelling, "Go Home!" versus Latinos saying, "We're here to stay!"

Bush's Plan to Seal Border Worries Mexico


President Bush's plan to send National Guard troops to patrol the southern border of the United States has raised the concern of his longtime ally President Vicente Fox of Mexico, who called Mr. Bush on Sunday to express his worries.

White House officials said Mr. Bush assured Mr. Fox that a permanent National Guard presence on the border was not being considered.

"The president made clear that the United States considers Mexico a friend," said Maria Tamburri, a White House spokeswoman.

Ms. Tamburri said the president told Mr. Fox, "What is being considered is not a militarization of the border, but support of border patrol capabilities, on a temporary basis, by National Guard personnel."

In a televised address scheduled for 8 p.m. Monday, Mr. Bush is expected to call for a significantly increased National Guard presence at the border. Officials have indicated that Mr. Bush could call for a force of thousands but that it would not be as high as 10,000, a number that had been rumored late last week.

Reports of the plan over the weekend also caused concern among lawmakers, including some Republicans, who said they feared the National Guard was already overextended with military missions abroad and with its response to natural disasters at home.

On Monday, Mr. Bush is also expected to outline several other proposals aimed at sealing the border and cracking down on workers who are illegally in the United States, and the employers who hire them. Aides said he would renew his calls for an overhaul of the nation's immigration law that includes provisions to grant illegal immigrants the right to work here legally.

The president's speech, his first on domestic policy from the Oval Office, is to come as the Senate begins trying again to pass a bill that addresses competing demands to stem the flow of workers across the border from Mexico and the desire of American employers to have reliable access to a low-wage work force.

White House officials have made it clear that they hope that a plan to seal the border will help Mr. Bush in that effort to strike a compromise between any bill passed in the Senate and the one passed in December in the House, where many Republicans have opposed any steps to legalize illegal workers.

Lawmakers from both parties expressed concerns on Sunday about the idea of deploying the National Guard.

Senator Chuck Hagel, Republican of Nebraska, who helped draft the Senate immigration bill, said he was skeptical about whether the plan would work.

"We have stretched our military as thin as we have ever seen it in modern times," Hagel said on "This Week" on ABC. "And what in the world are we talking about here, sending a National Guard that we may not have any capacity to send, up to or down to protect borders?"

He said he did not believe border protection was "the role of our National Guard."

Speaking on "Late Edition" on CNN, Senator Patrick J. Leahy, Democrat of Vermont, said expressed similar feelings, saying, , "We're stretching them pretty thin now. We're going to make a border patrol out of them?"

But White House officials said late last week that they believed the president's address on Monday would be welcomed by voters, who have told pollsters they would like to see tighter control of the borders.

"The president is looking to do everything he can to secure the border," said Stephen J. Hadley, the national security adviser, on "Face the Nation" on CBS. "It's what the American people want, it's what he wants to do."

Mr. Hadley said sending National Guard troops to the border — officials say there are about 200 there now — would supplement the Border Patrol as it adds agents whose training and deployment will take time.

White House officials said that was the message that the president conveyed to Mr. Fox, whose defense minister met on Friday with Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld at the Pentagon. Ms. Tamburri, the White House spokeswoman, said Mr. Fox and Mr. Bush also discussed "cooperative efforts under way" on the border.

A statement from Mr. Fox's office said that during the president's 30-minute conversation he reiterated to Mr. Bush his conviction that the best way to manage the problem of illegal migration was with comprehensive legislation.

Migration has been the centerpiece of Mr. Fox's foreign policy in the six years of his presidency. After the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, his hopes faltered for swift passage of measures to legalize an estimated six million Mexicans working illegally in the United States.

The relationship between Mexico and the United States grew tense as the Bush administration began focusing more on ways to seal the border than to expand opportunities for the legal flow of migrant workers. Still, Mr. Fox publicly supported most of Mr. Bush's law enforcement efforts on the border. His cooperation with the United States has cost him significant political clout, however, among an increasing number of left-leaning leaders across Latin America.

And with presidential elections less than two months away, feelings that Mr. Fox has subordinated Mexico's sovereignty to American interests threaten to affect the chances of the candidate he hopes to succeed him, Felipe Calderón.

Mr. Fox's expression of concern to Mr. Bush, along with that of members of Congress and some governors, underscored the constituencies the president is juggling as heseeks a legislative victory on an issue of special interest to him at a time when much of his agenda is stalled.

His push for granting illegal immigrants legal status, and his veiled discussion of a path to citizenship — he often says those who want to become citizens would have to go to "the back of the line" — has been dismissed as "amnesty" by some conservatives. And, as his party faces a rough midterm election fight, Republicans have worried that his push on immigration has helped demoralize core conservative voters.

Martinez: Open the presidency to immigrants
U.S. Sen. Mel Martinez said he favors stricter border patrols but sees nothing wrong with a foreign-born president.


WASHINGTON - Florida's Republican Sen. Mel Martinez wouldn't mind seeing the U.S. Constitution amended so that foreign-born citizens could serve as president -- but not for himself.

Speaking Friday at the National Press Club in advance of a return to the immigration debate in the Senate, the Cuban-born Martinez said the ban on foreign-born citizens serving as president is the ''one opportunity'' that's missing for striving immigrants in the United States.

''In a country where we don't put any limits on people's opportunity, it's one opportunity that's foreclosed,'' Martinez said.

`NOTHING I CAN'T DO'

'I would love to be able to stand before you and say `There's nothing I cannot do in this country.' ''

Martinez -- the first Cuban-born U.S. senator -- noted the ban potentially has prevented some ''brilliant people'' from serving.

He offered as examples former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger -- ''not electable, probably, but a brilliant guy,'' and Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger of California.

''I would like to think in the future, after a long tenure of residency, there would not be an impediment to the highest office in the land,'' Martinez said, adding, to laughter, ``I'm not making an announcement today, I'm just saying what would be good for the country as a whole.''

Supporters acknowledge the hurdles are daunting. Adopting constitutional amendments requires a two-thirds vote in both the House and Senate, then approval by 38 legislatures.

FAVORS REFORM

Martinez, like President Bush, favors comprehensive immigration reform that would include a path to citizenship for some illegal aliens, along with better border enforcement.

''I want the symbol of America to continue to be the Statue of Liberty, not a big old fence at the border,'' he said.

But he suggested that Bush, by focusing first on a guest worker policy, had ''got one step ahead of himself,'' and needs to offer immigration critics some concrete proposals for tightening border security in his address to the nation Monday.

Martinez, who arrived in the United States from Cuba legally in 1962, sought to portray the debate in personal terms.

''I remember when I began to dream in English,'' he said. ``I think immigrants come to this country not to change America, not to make my native language the tongue of this country, but immigrants come to this country to be changed by America. To make contributions.''

Martinez has criticized demonstrators at immigrant rallies for waving flags from other countries, and he told the audience Friday that the massive pro-immigration demonstrations have been counterproductive.

MINUTEMAN PROJECT

Across town, members of the Minuteman Project, an anti-immigration group whose members patrol the U.S.-Mexican border in search of illegal border-crossers, decried the Senate legislation -- which Martinez has championed.

Martinez -- noting he is ''not prepared'' to join the group -- said he understood their frustration about lack of border enforcement, and as long as they weren't breaking the law he suggested they were welcome to assist law enforcement.

But he criticized as unrealistic calls to deport the estimated 11 million to 12 million undocumented immigrants.

''How do you carry that off?'' he said. ``Send people with trucks to round people up?''

__________________________

That sure would open a really big can of rotten worms.

Immigration activists conduct training in Salem

Conference teaches how to galvanize the reform movement



They came to learn how to be leaders and advocates.

More than 100 college students from throughout Oregon and Idaho are in Salem this weekend to also learn how to organize marches, launch voter-registration drives and build alliances to push for legalizing immigrants who are living illegally in the United States.

The three-day conference, being held at Chemeketa Community College, is the last in a series of five training sessions held nationwide.

It's sponsored by the Washington, D.C.-based Center for Community Change, a nonprofit advocacy group, and the Fair Immigration Reform Movement, a coalition of nationwide community groups.

Galdina Larios, 19, a Salem resident and first-year student at CCC, said she was at the conference because she wanted to make a difference in immigrants' lives.

"We can't remain quiet anymore," she said. "If we don't speak up, who will?"

As the immigration-reform battle intensifies, the students were encouraged to put together ideas to influence federal legislation that could put the nearly 11 million illegal immigrants in the U.S. on a path to citizenship.

That fight isn't just about illegal immigrants from Mexico, said Bret Noble, 23, a junior at Boise State University in Idaho.

"We're trying to break the stereotype that immigration is only a Latino issue," Noble said. "It's also about illegal immigrants from Western Europe, Asia, Africa and other nations."

For other students, the fight is about human rights.

"It's silly that an issue of this magnitude can be reduced to an issue of national origin," said Erin Leonardson, 23, a senior at Boise State.

Students also learned how to push for passage of the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act, a federal measure that would allow certain illegal students from different nations to attend college and become U.S. citizens.

Mexicans Say Guard Won't Slow Migrants

Looking for someone to help him cross into the United States, Jorge Gutierrez said Monday it will take a lot more than U.S. National Guard troops to keep him and other migrants out.

Most Mexicans believe the plan, to be announced Monday night by President Bush, will do little to stop the flow north. President Vicente Fox called Bush this weekend to say he didn't believe sending soldiers to the border was the answer.

 The countries have rarely seen eye-to-eye since Bush and Fox agreed to work toward immigration reform five years ago at a meeting at Fox's ranch in Mexico. Fox wants the Bush administration to give amnesty to millions of migrants living in the U.S. and allow more to seek jobs legally from outside the country.

Bush rejected the idea of an amnesty and instead proposed allowing people with job offers to enter the United States and work legally for three years. The topic has generated fierce debate in Congress, where members are divided between those who want to see more security at the border and those who want immigration reform.

Bush is expected to propose sending National Guard troops to the border as a stopgap measure while the Border Patrol builds up its resources to more effectively secure the 2,000-mile line between the U.S. and Mexico.

The move is aimed at winning support for immigration reform from conservatives who are more interested in tightening security along the border.

Gutierrez, who had just arrived in Juarez from Torreon to look for a way to cross illegally into the United States, said he didn't believe the troops would make a difference.

"No guard, no wall will keep us from crossing," he said.

Jesus Rodriguez, 49, agreed. He was looking for ways to cross one of Juarez's international bridges. "For Mexicans, there are no obstacles," he said.

Francisco Loureiro, who runs a migrant shelter in Nogales, across the border from Nogales, Ariz., criticized the plan as an "aggressive action more than anything because the migrant is not a criminal or a terrorist."

"His only objective is to work ... and a government that supposedly lobbies for world peace is now acting against defenseless migrants who are helping to fill a need for employers in the U.S," he said.

Presidential spokesman Ruben Aguilar told reporters Monday that while Fox "expressed his concern" over the proposal to Bush, he had no choice but to respect it.

"It is a sovereign decision," he said. "We can't interfere."

Mexico has had a tough time convincing the U.S. that it is doing everything it can to prevent and provide alternatives to illegal migration, especially when it is dependent on the remittances migrants send home.

In 2005, migrants sent about $20 billion to Mexico, where remittances represent the second-largest source of foreign income, after oil sales.

The government may have been able to prevent the growing backlash against migrants in the United States if it had showed it was improving opportunities for Mexicans at home, said Rodolfo Garcia, an economist at the University of Zacatecas.

Consequently, instead of sharply protesting Bush's National Guard plan, Fox's administration is more likely to justify it, Garcia said, hoping that it will help Bush soften attitudes toward guest-worker and legalization proposals.

Nat'l Guard Not Expected to Patrol Border

WASHINGTON

The several thousand National Guard troops tapped for duty on the border with Mexico will not chase down illegal immigrants but instead will play behind-the-scenes roles in support of border guards, officials said Monday.

Among the tasks they are likely to perform over the coming year: training federal Border Patrol guards, building barriers near the border, improving roadways, providing support for aerial and ground surveillance, analyzing and sharing intelligence, and providing communications systems and transportation, the officials said.

The intent is to deepen the Guard's existing support for law enforcement agencies _ but only temporarily.

Several thousand Guard troops are likely to be called on. They will come mainly from the four border states _ California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas _ but those states' governors may also use Emergency Management Assistance Compacts to get Guard troops from other states. Any such cross-border arrangements would be coordinated by Lt. Gen. Steven Blum, chief of the National Guard Bureau at the Pentagon.

Although the plan for using extra Guard troops was worked out in Washington, the troops will not be put on federal status. Instead they will remain under the control of each state governor's office, with the federal government paying the cost, according to two defense officials who spoke only on condition of anonymity.

Pentagon officials offered few details in advance of President Bush's nationally televised address on the illegal immigration problem. Several defense officials stressed that the intention is to provide short-term assistance until the Border Patrol and other agencies can develop more of their own capabilities.

The National Guard already provides support to law enforcement agencies on the border, although in small numbers. Sending several thousand more will add yet another mission to a part-time force already stretched by the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"The idea that the Guard is overstretched is correct," retired Army Gen. George Joulwan said in an interview Monday. But he said its use in a supporting role can be justified, given the seriousness of the border problem.

"In a supporting role to law enforcement, I would agree that this is something they need to do," so long as the Pentagon is able to balance this with the Guard's commitments in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere, Joulwan said.

John Goheen, spokesman for the National Guard Association, an advocacy group for Guard officers, noted that the Army Guard and Air Guard combined have about 444,000 personnel across the United States.

"It would seem this mission is doable," Goheen said. "The numbers would not seem to make it that difficult."

Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said it was vital that Bush spell out the details of how the Guard will be used, and why.

"Unfortunately, President Bush has overtaxed, overused and underfunded this critical national security resource," Reid said.

"Now, if it's true the president is going to order them on another mission, he must tell us how he's going to help them succeed, and ensure they are ready and prepared should they be called to another mission while stationed at our border," Reid added.

At one point last year National Guard troops represented about 50 percent of all U.S. combat forces in Iraq, but that has dropped sharply in recent months and is now below 20 percent. It is not expected to rise significantly this year or next.

Hurricanes Katrina and Rita also put an extra burden on the Guard last year, requiring the use of 50,000 troops.

About 71,000 National Guard troops are on active duty for the war on terror. That's 16 percent of the total Guard force. Of the four border states affected, California and Texas both have about 20,000 Guard members; Arizona has about 7,400 and New Mexico has about 4,000. According to figures provided by the Pentagon, California, Arizona and New Mexico each have roughly 10 percent of their Guard force already mobilized for Iraq or Afghanistan; Texas has about 18 percent.

The White House press secretary, Tony Snow, said Bush would ensure that the border missions not conflict with the Guard's wartime duties.

"No. 1 is, he's not going to do anything to compromise the two key duties of the National Guard," Snow said. "One is to continue to fight the war on terror, and No. 2 is to respond quickly and effectively to natural disasters. ... You're talking about a very small percentage of the Guard at any one time."

Bush's Immigration Plan Draws GOP Fire

President Bush drew fresh criticism from House Republicans Tuesday for endorsing eventual citizenship for millions of illegal immigrants.

Republicans expressed support for new attempts to secure America's porous borders, but they rebelled against another element of what Bush calls a comprehensive plan to alter immigration laws.

"Thinly veiled attempts to promote amnesty cannot be tolerated,' said Rep. Tom Price, R-Ga. "While America is a nation of immigrants, we are also a nation of laws, and rewarding those who break our laws not only dishonors the hard work of those who came here legally but does nothing to fix our current situation."

On the morning after Bush's prime time speech, the White House sought to emphasize efforts to strengthen border security.

"This is going to be a tremendous enforcement support partnership," U.S. Border Patrol Chief David Aguilar told reporters at the White House, anticipating the deployment of up to 6,000 National Guard troops to states along the Mexican border.

"We can certainly do what is asked by our commander in chief," added Lt. Gen. Steven Blum, National Guard Army Bureau Chief.

Blum, Aguilar and others stressed that National Guard forces would function in support roles, leaving front-line law enforcement against illegal immigrants in the hands of federal Border Patrol agents.

As Bush's Monday night speech drew reaction from Republicans and Democrats, the Senate moved toward the first of several showdown votes over the next week or so on immigration legislation that followed the president's general recommendations. The measure provides greater border security, establishes a new guest worker program and offers an eventual chance at citizenship for most of the estimated 11 million to 12 million immigrants in the country illegally.

Democrats responded with a pledge of cooperation and a barbed question for the commander in chief. Bush "has the power to call up the National Guard to patrol the border," said Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin, the second-ranking Democrat. "But does he have the power to lead his own Republican forces in Congress in support of real immigration reform?"

Durbin's jab was aimed at anticipated year-end compromise negotiations with House Republicans. But the next move in an election-year struggle belonged to the Senate, where, hours before Bush spoke, debate opened on a bipartisan bill that generally met his specifications.

After months of political bickering, Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., and his Democratic counterpart, Sen. Harry Reid of Nevada, agreed the Senate was on track for passage of the bill by Memorial Day.

Supporters of the measure said they had the votes to block the first of several expected attempts by critics to rewrite the measure. Advanced by Sen. Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., the proposal would require the government to certify that border security provisions were fully operational before any illegal immigrant could receive a change in legal status.

"We must have a more permanent solution for securing our borders," Isakson said in a statement after Bush spoke, reaffirming his intention of seeking a vote on his proposal.

That wasn't how the sponsors of the Senate bill saw it, and Bush described his own views this way: "An immigration reform bill needs to be comprehensive, because all elements of this problem must be addressed together, or none of them will be solved at all."

The centerpiece of Bush's speech Monday night from the Oval office was his announcement that as many as 6,000 National Guard troops would be dispatched to states along the Mexican border to provide intelligence and surveillance support to Border Patrol agents. The Border Patrol would remain responsible for catching and detaining illegal immigrants.

"We do not yet have full control of the border, and I am determined to change that," the president said.

Still, Bush insisted, "The United States is not going to militarize the southern border."

Senate rejects 'security-first' proposal
Amendment called for tightening border before tackling other concerns

President Bush's plan for a "comprehensive approach" to immigration, outlined in a primetime speech last night, took one step forward today as the Senate rejected a call to secure the nation's borders before addressing other immigration-related concerns.

In a 55-40 vote, the Senate dismissed an amendment by Sen. Johnny Isakson, R-Ga, to bar the federal government from altering the status of any illegal immigrant until every border security provision in the immigration bill had been implemented and the Homeland Security secretary certified the border is secure.

Isakson said anything less than an approach that put border security first amounted to "a wink and a nod one more time to those who would come here" illegally.

A supporter of the proposal, Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., said Congress has "no business passing a comprehensive immigration bill without making sure, first, that the border will be secure."

"Upholding the rule of law on our border is as important as defending our freedom in Iraq," he said. "A nation that loses control of its own borders is a nation that is not likely to exist for long.”

But supporters of the comprehensive bill before the Senate argued Isakson's approach would be self-defeating.

"We have to have a comprehensive approach if we're going to gain control of the borders," said Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass.

The bill's supporters, nevertheless, are offering an alternative to Isakson's amendment that says any changes in immigration policy can proceed if the president declares they are in the nation's security interests.

At a news conference today with Australian Prime Minister John Howard, the president restated his vision.

"The objective is, on the one hand, protect our borders; and, on the other hand, never lose sight of the thing that makes America unique which is, we're a land of immigrants and that we're not going to discriminate against people," Bush said.

The president told the nation last night he has authorized deployment of up to 6,000 National Guard troops to states along the Mexican border.

Officials have emphasized the Guard forces would not engage in law enforcement, but would serve as a support to federal Border Patrol agents.

The president acknowledged in his speech last night, "We do not yet have full control of the border, and I am determined to change that."

He insisted, however, that the deployment is temporary and the U.S. "is not going to militarize the southern border."

Mexico Threatens Suits Over Guard Patrols

 Mexico said Tuesday that it would file lawsuits in U.S. courts if National Guard troops on the border become directly involved in detaining migrants.

Mexican border officials also said they worried that sending troops to heavily trafficked regions would push illegal migrants into more perilous areas of the U.S.-Mexican border to avoid detection.

 President Bush announced Monday that he would send 6,000 National Guard troops to the 2,000-mile border, but they would provide intelligence and surveillance support to Border Patrol agents, not catch and detain illegal immigrants.

"If there is a real wave of rights abuses, if we see the National Guard starting to directly participate in detaining people ... we would immediately start filing lawsuits through our consulates," Foreign Secretary Luis Ernesto Derbez told a Mexico City radio station. He did not offer further details.

Mexican officials worry the crackdown will lead to more deaths. Since Washington toughened security in Texas and California in 1994, migrants have flooded Arizona's hard-to-patrol desert and deaths have spiked. Migrant groups estimate 500 people died trying to cross the border in 2005. The Border Patrol reported 473 deaths in the fiscal year ending Sept. 30.

In Ciudad Juarez, Julieta Nunez Gonzalez, local representative of the Mexican government's National Immigration Institute, said Tuesday she will ask the government to send its migrant protection force, known as Grupo Beta, to more remote sections of the border.

Sending the National Guard "will not stop the flow of migrants, to the contrary, it will probably go up," as people try to get into the U.S. in the hope that they could benefit from a possible amnesty program, Nunez said.

Juan Canche, 36, traveled more than 1,200 miles to the border from the southern town of Izamal and said nothing would stop him from trying to cross.

"Even with a lot of guards and soldiers in place, we have to jump that puddle," said Canche, referring to the drought-stricken Rio Grande dividing Ciudad Juarez and El Paso, Texas. "My family is hungry and there is no work in my land. I have to risk it."

Some Mexican newspapers criticized President Vicente Fox for not taking a stronger stand against the measure, even though Fox called Bush to express his concerns.

A political cartoon in the Mexico City newspaper Reforma depicted Bush as a gorilla carrying a club with a flattened Fox stuck to it.

Fox's spokesman, Ruben Aguilar, said Tuesday that Mexico accepted Bush's statement that the sending in the National Guard didn't mean militarizing the area. He also said Mexico remained "optimistic" that the U.S. Senate would approve an immigration reform "in the interests of both countries."

Aguilar noted that Bush expressed support for the legalization of some immigrants and implementation of a guest worker program.

"This is definitely not a militarization," said Aguilar, who also dismissed as "absolutely false" rumors that Mexico would send its own troops to the border in response.

Bush has said sending the National Guard is intended as a stopgap measure while the Border Patrol builds up resources to more effectively secure the border.

In Nuevo Laredo, across from Laredo, Texas, Honduran Antonio Auriel said he would make it into the U.S.

"Soldiers on the border? That won't stop me," he said. "I'll swim the river and jump the wall. I'm going to arrive in the United States."

Bill permits 193 million more aliens by 2026

The Senate immigration reform bill would allow for up to 193 million new legal immigrants -- a number greater than 60 percent of the current U.S. population -- in the next 20 years, according to a study released yesterday.
    "The magnitude of changes that are entailed in this bill -- and are largely unknown -- rival the impact of the creation of Social Security or the creation of the Medicare program," said Robert Rector, senior policy analyst at the Heritage Foundation who conducted the study.
    Although the legislation would permit 193 million new immigrants in the next two decades, Mr. Rector estimated that it is more likely that about 103 million new immigrants actually would arrive in the next 20 years.
    Sen. Jeff Sessions, Alabama Republican who conducted a separate analysis that reached similar results, said Congress is "blissfully ignorant of the scope and impact" of the bill, which has bipartisan support in the Senate and has been praised by President Bush.
    "This Senate is not ready to pass legislation that so significantly changes our future immigration policy," he said yesterday. "The impact this bill will have over the next 20 years is monumental and has not been thought through."
    The 614-page "compromise" bill -- hastily cobbled together last month by Republican Sens. Chuck Hagel of Nebraska and Mel Martinez of Florida -- would give illegal aliens who have been in the U.S. two years or longer a right to citizenship. Illegals who have been here less than two years would have to return to their home countries to apply for citizenship.
    Although that "amnesty" would be granted to about 10 million illegals, the real growth in the immigrant population would come later.
    As part of the bill, the annual flow of legal immigrants allowed into the U.S. would more than double to more than 2 million annually. In addition, the guest-worker program in the bill would bring in 325,000 new workers annually who could later apply for citizenship.
    That population would grow exponentially from there because the millions of new citizens would be permitted to bring along their extended families. Also, Mr. Sessions said, the bill includes "escalating caps," which would raise the number of immigrants allowed in as more people seek to enter the U.S.
    "The impact of this increase in legal immigration dwarfs the magnitude of the amnesty provisions," said Mr. Rector, who has followed Congress for 25 years. He called the bill "the most dramatic piece of legislation in my experience."
    Mr. Rector based his numerical projection on the number of family members that past immigrants have sponsored.
    Immigration into the U.S. would become an "entitlement," Mr. Sessions said. "The decision as to who may come will almost totally be controlled by the desire of the individuals who wish to immigrate to the United States rather than by the United States government."
    Although most opposition has come from conservatives, liberals are growing increasingly uneasy about increasing the competition for American jobs -- especially the low-paying ones.
    Sen. Byron L. Dorgan, North Dakota Democrat, said yesterday that he would introduce an amendment to strip out the guest-worker program, warning that the legislation would "pull apart the middle class in this country."
    One of the most alarming aspects of the bill, opponents say, is that it eliminates a long-standing policy of U.S. immigration law that prohibits anyone from gaining permanent status here who is considered "likely to become a public charge," meaning welfare or other government subsidy.
    This change is particularly troublesome because the bill also slants legal immigration away from highly skilled and highly educated workers to the unskilled and uneducated, who are far more likely to require public assistance. In addition, adult immigrants will be permitted to bring along their parents, who would eventually be eligible for Social Security even though they had never paid into it.
    Mr. Rector estimated that the eventual cost of the bill to the American taxpayer would be about $50 billion per year. Mr. Sessions said he hopes to educate his colleagues about what's in the bill before they vote on it, but there's little evidence that they're interested.
    Last month, he asked the Senate Judiciary Committee to conduct an in-depth study and hold hearings into the fiscal impact of the bill as well as the impact the bill would have on future immigration. The committee produced no study and held one hearing strictly on the fiscal aspects of the bill. Only three of his fellow panel members showed up, he said.

The Unasked Question About Immigration ‘Reform’


If we build it, will they come?
Everyone assumes that the millions of illegal immigrants living in the United States will jump at the chance to accept whatever amnesty program is offered to them. No one is asking what happens if they choose to remain in the shadow economy. But why shouldn’t they?

Why should an illegal alien who has for years successfully flaunted immigration, employment, and tax laws be eager to join the new Peculiar Institution of the “Guest Worker” program? Will they be enticed by the opportunity to pay a $2000 fine and back taxes? Maybe the chance of being registered and tracked by the US government will seem attractive to them after all those years off the grid. Certainly being ordered to learn a foreign language, English, must have illegals all excited and eager to begin night classes.

Why would people who have fled the corrupt Mexican system, where la mordida rules every encounter with government officials, suddenly decide that ICE is their friend and savior? Especially since virtually the entire US government has declared that they are beyond the reach of law enforcement?

And what will we do when they, in their millions, don’t come?

Protesters want citizenship now
Reject all proposals, including guest-worker program

While a divided Congress wrangled over how to solve the immigration crisis, advocates of illegal aliens yesterday denounced all of the major legislation under consideration, along with President Bush's proposals, demanding in protests throughout California that they be given full citizenship now.

Protest organizer Luis Magaña in Stockton, Calif., condemned the president's guest-worker proposal, contending a similar program run from 1942 to 1964 was abusive, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

"If a program doesn't give us the full rights accorded other workers in the United States, then we're against it," he told the paper. "They haven't spelled out the details and there's no discussion with the people who will be affected."

Activists in several California cities held news conferences yesterday to denounce legislation under consideration in the Senate and passed by the House and to oppose the president's call to deploy National Guard troops on the border.

Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein's office in San Francisco was the site of one rally that featured signs and banners reading "Do Not Militarize the Border" and "No Human Being Is Illegal."

The protesters said they would continue until senators hear their message.

The Mexican government, meanwhile, warned it would file lawsuits in U.S. courts if National Guard troops detain illegals on the border.

"If there is a real wave of rights abuses, if we see the National Guard starting to directly participate in detaining people ... we would immediately start filing lawsuits through our consulates," Foreign Secretary Luis Ernesto Derbez said in an interview with a Mexico City radio station, according to the Associated Press.

Yesterday, President Bush's plan for a "comprehensive approach" to immigration, outlined in a primetime speech Monday night, took one step forward as the Senate rejected a call to secure the nation's borders before addressing other immigration-related concerns.

In a 55-40 vote, the Senate dismissed an amendment by Sen. Johnny Isakson, R-Ga, to bar the federal government from altering the status of any illegal immigrant until every border security provision in the immigration bill had been implemented and the Homeland Security secretary certified the border is secure.

As WorldNetDaily reported last month, images of seas of illegal aliens marching in cities across the U.S. have had a far greater negative than positive impact on the foreigners' cause, according to a poll.

A Zogby survey of nearly 8,000 people showed coast-to-coast protests against immigration proposals in Congress – particularly to make it a federal felony to be an illegal worker in the U.S. – have not persuaded a majority of likely American voters.

Asked whether the protests have made likely voters more or less sympathetic toward unlawful workers, 61 percent said they're less likely to be sympathetic to the plight of illegals as a result of the protests, while only 32 percent of respondents said they're now more sympathetic.

New Senate solution: Fence and citizenship
Lawmakers vote for 370-mile border barrier but keep process for illegals to become legal


The U.S. Senate today approved an amendment to the immigration reform bill that would direct the building of a triple-layer fence along 370 miles of the southern border with Mexico.

The 83-16 vote included a call for 500 miles of vehicle barriers.

Construction of the fence would send "a signal that open-border days are over. ... Good fences make good neighbors, fences don't make bad neighbors," Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., is quoted by the Associated Press as saying.

Session noted border areas where barriers already exist have enjoyed a reduction in crime and improvement in the economy.

Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., opposed the fence, saying, "What we have here has become a symbol for the right wing in American politics," adding that if the fence were ultimately approved, "our relationship with Mexico would come down to a barrier between our two countries."

The Senate today also voted down an attempt to remove from the larger bill a provision giving illegal aliens in the U.S. for more than two years a path to become citizens. The proposal to remove what some lawmakers consider amnesty was defeated 66-33.

Earlier today, the Senate OK'd a measure that would bar illegal aliens with criminal records from becoming legal residents or U.S. citizens.

Though the immigration-reform measure nearly died last month, observers see it passing the Senate in some form next week. The current House version of the bill does not include the privilege for illegal aliens to eventually become citizens.

Fence supporters hailed today's news.

"For the first time since the Senate began debating immigration reform legislation, there is now a bill that deserves support and has a chance of gaining passage," said Colin Hanna, president of WeNeedAFence.com, in a statement.

As WorldNetDaily reported, some border-activist groups have made plans to build border barriers with private money since the federal government to date has been reluctant to do so.

Some Doubt Border Technology's Efficacy


EL PASO, Texas -- Beto O'Rourke has lived in El Paso most of his life and cannot remember a time when there wasn't a fence or towering flood lights and pole-mounted cameras lining the banks of the Rio Grande.

So when President Bush proposed adding a high-tech fence, cameras and other technology to urban areas along the Mexican border, O'Rourke didn't pay much attention.

"It didn't seem like a meaningful suggestion at all," said O'Rourke, a 33-year-old freshman city councilman in this border city. "But maybe that's because we already have it and it doesn't seem to be working."

El Paso's border isn't alone in having the kinds of technology Bush proposed this week. Most urban spots along the Texas-Mexico border, as well San Diego and Nogales, Ariz., have them too. But still, immigrants and drug smugglers have found their way across the riverbed in Texas and deserts of Arizona, California, New Mexico and Arizona.

In El Paso, the largest city on the southern border, flood lights line nearly 20 miles of border and two sets of barbed wire-topped chain link fences line about 14 miles. Near downtown, three fences stretch across five miles.

Bush's technology proposals were included in a plan announced Monday to stem illegal immigration, in part by deploying up to 6,000 National Guard members to help secure the 2,000-mile border. In Washington, Border Patrol Chief David Aguilar told reporters that the upgrades and Guard assistance "is going to be a tremendous enforcement support partnership."

But T.J. Bonner, the head of the union that represents nearly all U.S. Border Patrol agents, said the plan was "underwhelming."

"The whole thing is just a smoke screen," said Bonner, president of the National Border Patrol Council.

He also questioned how the technology will be implemented. The last time cameras and sensors were bought and installed - a project that started in the 1990s - millions of dollars were spent on equipment that was either never installed or improperly maintained.

A federal investigation was launched in 2005 after an audit revealed lax oversight of the program, which was designed to keep tabs on unmanned sections of the border at all times.

Another part of Bush's plan - building vehicle barriers in rural areas - could run into problems along parts of the border. In Texas, where the border is marked by the winding Rio Grande, that option may not be the most practical.

Sheriff Danny C. Dominguez of Presidio County, said building barriers - hollow six-foot-tall reinforced steel beams planted in the desert floor and filled with cement - across the 108 miles of river in his rural county would be a waste of money. The desert in his county near Texas' Big Bend region is rugged and difficult to drive in even the heaviest of vehicles.

Bonner noted numerous spots along Texas' 1,200-mile river border that are simply too deep and wide to cross in a vehicle. And the spaced-out steel pipes wouldn't do much to stop row boats and inner tubes used to ferry immigrants and drug loads across the river.

Mayor David Franz of Hidalgo, Texas, whose small city is across the river from Reynosa, Mexico, population 750,000, doesn't want barriers or a fence.

"Fences and barriers I don't think is going to be the answer," he said. "I don't want the border to appear like a military zone. We've enjoyed a very good and long-lasting relationship with our Mexican neighbors and putting up a wall or a fence sends a wrong message."

Bonner said an unmanned aerial vehicle, which Bush also proposed adding to the federal border arsenal, sounds like a good idea but is an overly expensive tool. Besides, the one UAV the Border Patrol did have crashed in the Arizona desert last month.

"We crashed the one we owned," Bonner said. "Kissed that...tax money goodbye."

Mexican town a last-stop shop for illegal immigrants

ALTAR, Mexico — Some towns thrive on manufacturing. Others are known for fertile soil or tourist attractions.

Altar has only one industry of any visibility and consequence: immigrant smuggling.

This dusty town is the last stop on the line before a 60-mile drive along back roads to the United States. It's a place to buy water, food and the accoutrement of choice for illegal desert crossers — a backpack.

"Altar is just like a big Wal-Mart for smugglers," said Sean King, spokesman for the Tucson, Ariz., sector of the U.S. Border Patrol. "They've got booths set up for backpacks that are prepacked with toilet paper ... shoes that are better to walk in than some of the huaraches they might be wearing — everything you need to come across the border."

There are no holidays in Altar. No "Day Without an Immigrant." No Cinco de Mayo. On any given day, 1,600 people show up from all over Mexico. In April, the high season, 3,000 rolled in every day, according to officials who run the Catholic shelter.

They are lured to Altar by "coyotes" who charge them $2,000-$4,000 for a chance to cross the most inhospitable stretch of desert on the U.S.-Mexico border. They cram like sardines into $3-a-night flophouses or, for those who can afford it, hotels that charge $30 to $40 for 12 hours.

Before they head north, immigrants often kneel in prayer before a bank of candles and a statue of Jesus in Our Lady of Guadalupe Church. Then they silently march, 30 and 40 at a time, into vans rigged to hold maximum human cargo.

Metal benches run down the sides and center. Cages at head level secure their backpacks for a bumpy, $15 journey to the desolate outskirts of Sasabe, Mexico, the preferred point of entry and the busiest zone on the border for U.S. authorities.

The lucky ones soon find themselves tending manicured lawns in New Jersey or framing houses in California or Texas.

Others end up dead or, like Fabian Rivera Ramirez, arrested, fingerprinted, injured and back in Altar. Rivera tried to cross three times in 17 days, walking for eight days until his blistered feet ached and bled.

He admitted he veered from the path of legality but, with a kid in college and a mountain of unpaid medical bills, Rivera, 50, said he tried to cross illegally for the first time in his life.

"We don't have a right to emigrate," the Veracruz native said. "But how different it would be if we had a permit. Then it wouldn't be a violation. It would be an opportunity."

The smuggling trade is tightly controlled and highly organized on both sides of the border. Mountains of marijuana flow through here, too, but that trade occurs in the shadows.

On the U.S. side, drug-smuggling scouts use solar-powered batteries and radios to keep a watch on law enforcement, and human traffickers maintain safe houses throughout southern Arizona, Border Patrol officials say.

In Altar, the 150 or so "guest houses" and nine hotels, the kiosks brimming with backpacks and shoes, the road to the border and the ubiquitous vans marked "Altar-Sasabe" are part of a vast migrant-smuggling network.

"Altar has no other economic activity," said Francisco Garcia Aten, human-rights coordinator at the Catholic-run immigrant shelter. "Altar is the waiting room for migrants. This is the last place for migrants to have access to the maximum number of services they need to cross. It's the last piece of civilization they'll see for three, four, five or six days."

Garcia Aten said the toll road to Sasabe is run by a former city official who also owns one of Altar's hotels. Receipts are given out at the toll booth, and officially the road is public, but the money feeds the smuggling network, Garcia said. "Nobody says anything about it," he said.

There is even an informal trade union of smuggling coyotes, according to Hector, a guest-house manager who didn't want his full name published. Problems, he said, tend to get handled the old-fashioned way: "The desert has no ears," he said.

People have been streaming into Altar — the gateway to Arizona — since authorities in Texas and California installed physical barriers and increased patrols in the 1990s.

But there are hurdles of a different kind, Garcia said. Immigrants first must get past police shakedowns on the Mexican side, then avoid bandits who operate out of Mexico but prey on crossers a few hundred yards north of the border. If immigrants get beyond those barriers, thousands of Border Patrol agents, with electronic sensors and helicopter support, await them.

Those who don't get busted risk dehydration and death.

Nearly half of the 473 immigrant deaths in 2005 occurred in the Tucson sector, which runs along 261 miles of international border from New Mexico to the Yuma County, Ariz., line. Summer temperatures can reach 130 degrees in the Sonoran Desert.

In Altar, the single public hospital does not accept injured or ailing immigrants, a task that falls to a mobile clinic run by the International Red Cross, said Gerardo Cardenas, a paramedic who works there. The unit treats 1,000 people a month on average.

Despite the risks, immigrants keep coming.

Sometimes it takes multiple attempts and detentions before people make it through. One man needed 28 tries.

Local Man's Window Broken Over Illegal Alien Sign

(KDKA) WEST HOMESTEAD A local man is angry after someone threw a brick through the window of his business; but a controversial sign he posted may have provoked it.

The sign reads: "Deport Aliens Now"

The brick that crashed through the window had "Freedom 4 All" painted on one side.

It happened overnight at the Diller-Lloyd Insurance Company on East Eight Avenue In West Homestead.

The owner, Dan Lloyd says he has not done anything wrong and believes illegal aliens should be deported.

"I think if people are here illegally, they ought to be deported," he said.

Lloyd says he's not intimidated by the broken window.

"Take your best shot, but I'm not going to take my sign down because I have my right to free speech," Lloyd said. "i'm an American and I'm going to continue to exercise my right."

 Unions Oppose Hiring of Mexican Workers by Vidor Business

 Camille Briggs BUNA BASED SOUTHEAST TEXAS INDUSTRIES SAYS IT HAS EXHAUSTED EFFORTS TO FIND QUALIFIED WORKERS IN SOUTHEAST TEXAS.
COMPANY REPRESENTATIVES SAY THEY'VE BEEN FORCED TO GO ACROSS THE BORDER TO SEEK OUT EMPLOYEES.
THE COMPANY'S ATTORNEY PETITIONED THE VIDOR CITY COUNCIL TONIGHT TO ALLOW THEM TO HOUSE UP TO 100 DOCUMENTED MEXICAN WORKERS ON SITE ... TO FILL ITS NEED.
REPRESENTS FROM LOCAL LABOR UNIONS EACH TOOK TURNS VOICING THEIR DISAPPROVAL OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS INDUSTRIES DURING THURSDAY'S VIDOR CITY COUNCIL MEETING.
Jerry Wayne Pillsbury/Pipefitters Union
"It's 2006 and we are setting up concentrations camps. They work 12 hour days ... 7 days a week ... Have we progressed to that."

SOUTHEAST TEXAS INDUSTRIES' ATTORNEY ... JIM WIMBERLEY IS ASKING THE VIDOR CITY COUNCIL TO ALLOW HIS CLIENT TO HOUSE DOZENS OF MEXICAN WORKERS IN A FENCED IN AREA ON SITE.
Jim Wimberley/Southeast Texas Industries
"There's going to be a communication problem. This is not something my client wanted to do. This is a last resort."

WIMBERLEY SAYS THE COMPANY HAS WORKED FOR MONTHS TRYING TO HIRE LOCAL SKILLED LABOR, BUT HAS COME UP SHORT.
Jim Wimberley/Southeast Texas Industries
"Just to be clear $18 an hour is what you are paying them right? For steel workers, yes ma'am."

SO THE COMPANY WANTS TO HIRE UP TO 100 MEXICAN WORKERS UNTIL THE JOB MARKET IMPROVES OR UNTIL THE JOB IS DONE.

Jim Wimberley/Southeast Texas Industries
"The maximum they could stay here is 10 months. You can bring in another crew in for 10 months then our contract would be up."
Camille Briggs/Reporting
"The company plans to house up to 100 Mexican workers on the property next to its main building. Their food, lodging and utilities would be paid for by the company. Union members say if they are paying them $18 an hour ... That just doesn't add up."
Jerry Wayne Pillsbury/Pipefitters Union
"I would believe he is paying a handful of guys $18 an hour, but I would bet you the average wage is $14."

PILLSBURY BELIEVES THERE ARE PLENTY OF LOCAL WORKERS AVAILABLE AND WILLING TO WORK IF THE COMPANY IS PAYING A FAIR WAGE.
HE BELIEVES THE MEXICAN WORKERS ARE BEING EXPLOITED AND NEIGHBORS ARE CONCERNED THAT VITAL REVENUE IS LEAVING THE AREA.
RIGHT NOW THERE ARE SEVERAL TRAILERS LOCATED NEXT TO THE COMPANY AND NEIGHBORS SAY ABOUT 50 MEXICAN WORKERS ARE ALREADY THERE.
RIGHT NOW THE COMPANY IS TRYING TO FIND THE TYPE OF HOUSING THAT WILL MEET THE CITY'S REQUIREMENTS.

Indians affected by immigration
But in Durango area, work abounds
By Electa Draper
Denver Post Staff Writer

Durango - They are the furthest from immigrant status in this country, but American Indians are the other indispensable and largely invisible workforce that keeps southwestern Colorado's tourism-dominated economy humming.

One of the widely voiced arguments for an open-door policy for immigrant workers from Mexico and elsewhere is that they fill the low-paying jobs that Americans won't take. But countless Navajos make hours-long commutes here from a reservation that sprawls over parts of New Mexico, Utah and Arizona.

Among other things, they make hotel beds, mop floors, serve meals, sew seams, wrangle livestock, create art, staff casinos and put up drywall.

"If anyone has a right to be upset by immigration, it's Native Americans," says Eddie Soto, coordinator for Durango-based Los Compañeros, a Latino and immigrant advocacy group.

While the Southern Ute and Ute Mountain Ute tribes of southwestern Colorado are two of the largest employers of all people in La Plata and Montezuma counties, the 2000 census reported continued high unemployment on the Navajo reservation. The reservation labor force (16 years and older)was numbered at 51,363, of whom 12,865, or 25 percent, were unemployed.

Durango, with some the highest job-vacancy rates in Colorado , is a magnet for job-seeking Navajos, says Bobby Lieb, director of the Durango Area Chamber of Commerce.

"The (immigrant worker) is helping fill these vacancies," Lieb says. "If they are competing with anyone, it might be Native Americans, whose significant commutes off the reservation can sometimes create attendance problems."

But Rod Barker, owner of the historic Strater Hotel, says the labor shortage is so acute that he doesn't believe the two pools of workers are competing for jobs.

"I really don't think there is a single case of Mexican nationals displacing anyone," says Barker, who knows of one hotelier that recruits housekeepers from Europe to fill ranks. "The biggest problem businesses here face is where are we going to get more workers."

And Deb Schultz at SOS Staffing agrees there is enough low-wage work to go around in tourism, construction and clerical fields.

No one knows how many nonresident workers are vying for jobs in the region or the state, says Bill Thoennes, spokesman for the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment.

"We really know nothing about these groups," he says.

The fear now is that high gasoline prices will further shrink the labor pool that has been fed by long-distance commuters who could not afford the high cost of housing here.

Ophelia Castiano, a Navajo who drives about two hours to and from Bloomfield, N.M., to work at the Best Western Durango Inn for just over $6 an hour says that the $1 more an hour she can make here is being eaten up by rising fuel costs.

Durango's job market was radically transformed about a decade ago with the opening of one store, Barker says.

"Wal-Mart came in and the labor shortage began at that moment," he says. "They require so many people."

Border security
Troop outcry mounts


REDFORD, Texas -- Residents of this tiny community, traumatized nine years ago when an 18-year-old goatherder was shot and killed by Marines helping the Border Patrol, say they know exactly what will happen when National Guard troops are sent to the U.S.-Mexico border.

"If four Marines killed one American, imagine what 6,000 troops will do," Redford native Enrique Madrid said.

Redford residents were shocked when four undercover Marines on assignment in their town killed local resident Esequiel Hernandez Jr. on May 20, 1997.

The community's nightmare became heavier on Monday when President Bush announced that 6,000 National Guard soldiers would be sent toÊthe U.S.-Mexico border on temporary assignment to help the U.S. Border Patrol.

To this day, family members and Redford residents don't know why the Marines shot Hernandez because he was in the open, about 100 yards from his home and in an area that he walked daily.

"He walked the goats around here every day," Madrid said. "The Marines had been here a while, so they knew where he lived and what he was doing. They knew he walked the goats down to the river for grazing every day."

Marines officials said the Marines shot at Hernandez after he fired a .22-caliber rifle at them. Military officials said the Marines did nothing wrong. However, U.S. government officials settled a civil, wrongful-death lawsuit with the family for $1.9 million.

After the shooting, several agencies, including the Texas Rangers, investigated the death and threatened to indict the Marines on murder charges. No charges were filed

Immediately after the slaying, all troops were pulled from the U.S.-Mexico border.

"It will happen again. They will kill again," said Margarito Hernandez, Esequiel's older brother. "It is what troops are trained to do. They are not law enforcement officers. They are not Border Patrol. They are trained to shoot first."

Margarito Hernandez, 37, a police officer for the city of Presidio, which is 16 miles north of Redford, said the training law enforcement and Border Patrol agents get is different from what soldiers are given. Any police officer or Border Patrol officer would have identified himself and would have talked to Esequiel Hernandez before shooting at him, his older brother said.

"We didn't even know the Marines were in the area," Margarito Hernandez said. "They were dressed in (camouflage); you couldn't see them in the bushes. You could not tell who or what they were."

Margarito Hernandez said the family, which lives within 100 yards of Esequiel Hernandez's grave and about 50 feet from the Rio Grande, is still in disbelief.

"While it happened nine years ago, it seems like yesterday," Margarito Hernandez said. "You start accepting what happened, and then you hear this announcement again
   
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-- you hear that troops are coming again. It gets tough. Everyone wants to interview you and then the TV has it. This is not something we need, especially in this town."

Redford is a small farming community on the state highway that leads to Big Bend National Park. It is about 250 miles south of El Paso and 80 miles north of Big Bend National Park.

The elementary school in the middle of town is closed, and the students are bused to Presidio. Most of the families living in the town, which overlooks the Rio Grande, have been there forever, residents said. There is one post office and no store.

Jimmy Peña, a longtime Redford resident, said you never see undocumented immigrants or drug runners in the area.

"The only people here are those who live here," Peña said. "No one else comes around, and no one is running drugs here."

The Marines in 1997 were on an anti-drug-smuggling mission and were helping the Border Patrol track drug smugglers.

Madrid, who is a member of the Redford Citizens Committee for Justice, said he read the congressional investigation briefing on the shootingÊand read that the Marines were told that 75 percent of the population in Redford were drug traffickers.

"That was the only information they were given about this town, so we were all suspects," Madrid said. "The new troops will come here without training either, and will be just following orders."

President Bush's plan does not have details as to where soldiers will be sent. But it does say the soldiers will be on the border for a year, and will be removed asÊBorder Patrol agentsÊare hired and trained.

Sandra Loera, a convenience store clerk in Presidio, which has 5,000 residents and is across the Rio Grande from Ojinaga, Mexico,Êsaid the soldiers are not needed in their region.

"Everyone is afraid because of what happened," she said. "This is one community here and people go back and forth. With the soldiers here, people will be afraid."

A retired Episcopal minister, Melvin LaFollette, who lives in Redford, said the community of about 100 residents is still outraged over the 1997 shooting. They hope no soldiers get assigned to the Big Bend region.

"We thought they had learned their lesson," LaFollette said. "If you put soldiers with guns on the border, someone will get killed."

Senate OKs Border Fence


    The Senate voted to build 370 miles of triple-layered fencing along the Mexican border Wednesday and clashed over citizenship for millions of men and women who live in the United States illegally.

    Amid increasingly emotional debate over election-year immigration legislation, senators voted 83-16 to add fencing and 500 miles of vehicle barriers along the southern border. It marked the first significant victory in two days for conservatives seeking to place their stamp on the contentious measure.

    The prospects were less favorable for their attempt to strip out portions of the legislation that could allow citizenship for millions of illegal immigrants and create new guest worker programs.

    The Senate acted in a volatile political environment, as the White House struggled for a second day to ease the concerns of House Republicans who contend that President Bush favors amnesty for illegal immigrants.

    Thousands of demonstrators massed a few blocks from the Capitol demanding immigrant rights.

    Construction of the barrier would send “a signal that open-border days are over. … Good fences make good neighbors, fences don’t make bad neighbors,” said Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala. He said border areas where barriers already exist have experienced economic improvement and reduced crime.

Building better fences should be a no brainer in fixing our border problem. I was amazed at how poor the fencing was when I was watching Greta the other night being given a tour by one of the Minutemen. Building a better fence should be common sense. Of course there will be certain moonbats that we already know don’t have any of that.

Dick Durbin had this to say.

    “What we have here has become a symbol for the right wing in American politics,” countered Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill. He said if the proposal passed, “our relationship with Mexico would come down to a barrier between our two countries.”

Durbin wasn’t alone in his backwards logic, Kennedy joins in the nonsense.

LA city workers arrested for alleged immigration violations


LOS ANGELES - Eight workers at the city's Department of Water and Power have been arrested because they were unauthorized to work in the United States, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said.

The agency arrested five people Tuesday and had previously arrested three others as part of a yearlong review of the utility's employment records by the agency and the utility itself.

The workers held both blue collar and management jobs, according to an ICE statement. All had been with the company for at least three years and one made more than $100,000 a year.

The joint investigation was part of a larger effort by ICE to root out unauthorized workers with access to critical infrastructure like nuclear plants and water supplies, though the agency emphasized that none of the arrested had known terrorist ties.

All of the arrested workers - nationals of Ethiopia, Nigeria, El Salvador and Mexico whose names were not released - had come to the United States legally. Some, however, had visas that did not authorize them to work and two were legal residents with criminal convictions that made them eligible for deportation, the statement said.

The DWP was not accused of knowingly hiring illegal workers, and the agency participated fully in the investigation that examined the records of over 7000 employees, ICE said.

"In many cases, companies such as DWP seek to hire legal workers, only to have their efforts undermined by employees who present counterfeit documents or knowingly violate the conditions of their admission," said Julie L. Myers, Homeland Security's assistant secretary for the immigration and customs agency.

"When a person uses fraud or false documents to obtain a job, they mask not only their true identities, but also their motives and in some cases, their criminal history."

Many immigrant smugglers not prosecuted

The vast majority of people caught smuggling immigrants across the border near San Diego are never prosecuted for the offense, demoralizing the agents making the arrests, according to an internal Border Patrol document obtained by The Associated Press.

"It is very difficult to keep agents' morale up when the laws they were told to uphold are being watered-down or not prosecuted," the report says.

The report offers a stark assessment of the situation at a Border Patrol station responsible for guarding 13 miles of mountainous border east of the city. Federal officials say it reflects a reality along the entire 2,000-mile border: Judges and federal attorneys are so swamped that only the most egregious smuggling cases are prosecuted.

Only 6 percent of 289 suspected immigrant smugglers were prosecuted by the federal government for that offense in the year ending in September 2004, according to the report. Some were instead prosecuted for another crime. Other cases were declined by federal prosecutors, or the suspect was released by the Border Patrol.

The report raises doubts about the value of tightening security along the Mexican border. President Bush wants to hire 6,000 more Border Patrol agents and dispatch up to 6,000 National Guardsmen. He did not mention overburdened courts in his Oval Office address Monday on immigration.

The report was provided to the AP by the office of Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., who has accused the chief federal prosecutor in San Diego of being lax on smuggling cases. Issa's office said it was an internal Border Patrol report written last August. It was unclear who wrote it.

The lack of prosecutions is "demoralizing the agents and making a joke out of our system of justice," said T.J. Bonner, president of the National Border Patrol Council, which represents agents. "It is certainly a weak link in our immigration-enforcement chain."

The 41-page report says federal prosecutors in San Diego typically prosecute smugglers who commit "dangerous/violent activity" or guide at least 12 illegal immigrants across the border. But other smugglers know they are only going to get "slapped on the wrist," according to the report.

The report cites a 19-year-old U.S. citizen caught three times in a two-week period in 2004 trying to sneak people from Tijuana, Mexico, to San Diego in his car trunk, two at a time.

"This is an example of a kid who knows the system," the report says. "What is true is that he will probably never be prosecuted if he only smuggles only one or two bodies at a time."

The report also cites a Mexican citizen who was caught in Arizona and California driving with illegal immigrants and was released each time to Mexico. He was prosecuted the fourth time, when two illegal immigrants in his van died in a crash, and sentenced to five years in prison.

U.S. Attorney Carol Lam in San Diego said about half her 110 attorneys work on border cases in an area where the Border Patrol made nearly 140,000 arrests last year. She said she gives highest priority to the most serious cases, including suspects with long histories of violent crime or offenders who endanger others' lives.

"We figure out how many cases our office can handle, start from the worst and work our way down," she said.

Lam said many suspected migrant smugglers are prosecuted instead for re-entering the country after being deported, a crime that can be proved with documents. Smuggling cases are more difficult to prosecute because they require witnesses to testify.

The Border Patrol, which would neither confirm nor deny the document's authenticity, said prosecutors in San Diego recently agreed to prosecute a Top 20 list of smugglers if they are caught.

The Justice Department in Washington declined to comment. However, at a congressional hearing last month, Rep. Ric Keller, R-Fla., told Attorney General Alberto Gonzales that Lam's record on migrant smuggling was "a pathetic failure." Gonzales replied that he was urging U.S. attorneys to more actively enforce laws but noted that immigration cases were "a tremendous strain and burden" along the border.

Peter Nunez, a former U.S. attorney in San Diego, said prosecutors along the border struggle with limited resources and a huge caseload of immigration cases.

"This is not an indictment of the U.S. Attorney's Office, because you have to deal with the realities of the caseload, but it is an indictment of how badly Congress and presidents have handled the immigration system," he said.

The report says immigrants in the area paid an average of $1,398 to be guided across the border in 2004.

"Smugglers are making lots of money breaking the immigration laws, and there is not much incentive for them to stop these illegal activities," it says. "The smugglers know that even if they are caught, it will be difficult to punish them."

Senator: Colleagues
'should be ashamed'
Alabama lawmaker says sweeping bill
offering illegals citizenship likely to pass

Declaring the Senate "should be ashamed" of itself, an opponent of a comprehensive immigration plan that includes a guest-worker program believes the measure will pass next week.

Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., made his remarks as the Senate prepared to act on a bill designed to tighten border security and provide a path to citizenship for most of the estimated 12 million illegal aliens in the country.

Sessions said a filibuster to block the bill is unlikely, but he believes the House and Senate will not be able to hammer out a compromise this year. The House's companion bill, passed in December, calls for making illegal presence in the country a felony.

Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., won't say whether he'll support the bill.

President Bush has supported the Senate's general approach, but he also has not publicly stated whether he would sign it into law.

The White House has expressed support for two amendments passed yesterday, one declaring English the national language and the other calling it the "common unifying language."

White House press secretary Tony Snow said the president "wants to make sure that people who become American citizens have a command of the English language. It's as simple as that."

Some senators say the two amendments are contradictory, but 24 voted for both.

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., explained: "We are trying to make an assimilation statement."

Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid charged yesterday that support of English as a national language is racist because it's aimed at Spanish speakers.

The measure would make an exception for any language assistance already guaranteed by law. Anyone seeking citizenship would be required to demonstrate a "sufficient understanding of the English language for usage in everyday life."

Yesterday, the Senate rejected an effort to limit Social Security benefits for illegal aliens who become permanent residents under an immigration reform bill being debated.

As it stands, the bill the Senate is considering would give millions of illegals a path to U.S. citizenship if they pay fines, back taxes and meet other requirements.

The Social Security proposal, offered by Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., would have prevented illegals who become legal from collecting the benefit on wages they earned while working unlawfully.

"Social Security was not intended for people who entered our country illegally," Ensign is quoted as saying.

Countered Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass.: "Their money sits in the Social Security Administration waiting to be matched with an eligible beneficiary, and once those workers establish the eligibility, how in all fairness can we deny them the credit for their past contributions?"

As WorldNetDaily reported, Wednesday the Senate approved an amendment to the immigration reform bill that would direct the building of a triple-layer fence along 370 miles of the southern border with Mexico.

The Bush administration indicated yesterday the president supported the fence proposal.

"[The president] doesn't think you fence off the entire border but there are places ... where fences are appropriate, and then, you build fences there," spokesman Tony Snow said.

 Sentences handed down for fake payroll checks
Mary Jo Denton
Herald-Citizen Staff

COOKEVILLE -- Eight Hispanic men arrested last month with a batch of fake payroll checks, fake ID's, and a large wad of cash went to court this week, and four have now been released from the Putnam jail.

All eight are in the United States illegally, but federal immigration authorities are currently planning to deport only three of the eight, while one is to be turned over to authorities in Illinois, where he is wanted on another charge.

The eight men were arrested by Cookeville Police on April 7 after thousands of dollars in fake Perdue Farms payroll checks had been cashed at businesses in Monterey and Cookeville.

The eight were charged with "criminal simulation forgery," and went to General Sessions Court on Wednesday, where court-appointed attorneys announced the details of plea arrangements which had been worked out.

The eight, who had been held in the Putnam jail since their arrest, pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of "attempted criminal simulation," in exchange for sentences of 11 months and 29 days in jail, all of it suspended except 40 days, about the same amount of time they have already been in jail.

They were also ordered to make restitution of $10,000, and it was understood that they were to be turned over to federal authorities for possible deportation, court clerks said.

As of this morning, four of the eight had been released from jail because U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials told Putnam jail officials they would not move to deport those four.

Three of the eight were ordered held for deportation, and one was still being held this morning awaiting extradition to Illinois.

The three who will be deported are Joaquin Doriga, 26, Victor Avila, 23, and Jose Chavez, 23.

The one awaiting extradition is Hector Zabala, 27.

The four released are Demertio Mejia DeDios, 31, Samuel Fuez, 23, Javier Cruz Lopez, 29, and Anthony Perrara Walker, 30.

Police officials here were uncertain of the real identities of the eight, and more than one name for some of the eight appears on jail records.

The $6,000 confiscated at the time of the arrests will be distributed to the merchants who lost money by cashing the counterfeit checks.

No Frills Mandates Spanish At South Omaha Store
Store Will Pay For Managers, Others To Learn Language

OMAHA, Neb. -- A new policy at a local supermarket has some shoppers upset.

No Frills on 36th and Q streets is asking some employees to learn Spanish so they can help customers who only speak that language. No Frills said it made the decision purely based on the bottom line. Spanish-speaking managers can cater to the large contingent of south Omaha Spanish speaking clients, but the policy is getting a mixed reaction from shoppers.

No Frills Manager Dick O'Donnell said he decided a few years back to brush up on his Spanish. He figured doing so would help him with the store's growing number of Latino shoppers. Store managers said at least two-thirds of customers at the store speak Spanish, and for years it has carried a large collection of Hispanic groceries, so this is the next logical step.

"You can help people so much with just small problems that they have, with our customer service counter, or if they're looking for something, or directions to some place.," O'Donnell said.

Now, No Frills is making Spanish mandatory for all managers, pharmacists and butchers at the store on 36th and Q. The company will pay for all classes, including overtime. Managers who don't want to learn Spanish have the option of transferring to other stores. No other No Frills locations are included in the mandate.

"This is not a political issue at all, this strictly taking care of business," said No Frills President Rich Juro.

With the country abuzz over illegal immigration, the new policy doesn't please all No Frills shoppers. One told KETV NewsWatch 7 he thinks immigrants should learn English.

Despite the comments, No Frills said a little bit of Spanish will go a long way toward better customer service.

242 illegal immigrants deported from Houston


The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement office in Houston Thursday deported 242 illegal immigrants who had received final orders of deportation from federal immigration judges.

ICE buses transported the immigrants from their detention facilities to Bush Intercontinental Airport, where they were flown to their countries of origin, ICE officials said in a prepared statement today.

The group included 74 Honduran nationals and 36 Guatemalan nationals with violent criminal records and immigration violations, officials said. They flew in government aircraft via the Justice Prisoner and Alien Transportation System, which is operated by the U.S. Marshals Service.

Thursday afternoon, ICE officers bused another 132 Mexican nationals to the southern Texas border, escorted them across the international bridge, and turned them over to Mexican authorities.

Many of the Central Americans and Mexican nationals deported Thursday had criminal histories that include murder, drug possession, aggravated assault, larceny, burglary, sexual assault of a minor, gang activity and armed robbery, officials said.

Many violent criminals from Honduras, Guatemala and Mexico had been transferred to ICE custody after they served prison terms in state or federal facilities. Others had been apprehended by ICE National Fugitive Operations Program officers.

Some of the deportees were noncriminal aliens who had not complied with an immigration judge’s final orders of deportation.

The deportations were part of the Secure Border Initiative, a plan by the Department of Homeland Security to secure the U.S. borders and reduce illegal migration.

Democrat hopefuls propose public hangings of illegals
Alabama candidates endorse 90-day grace period to leave state



Alabama's Democratic Party is distancing itself from two Democratic candidates for state office who think all illegal immigrants must leave or be killed.

Party officials described the platforms of candidates Larry Darby and Harry Lyon as ridiculous, unconstitutional and offensive. Darby is running for attorney general, and Lyon is a gubernatorial candidate.

Both agree the influx of illegal immigration into Alabama must be stopped, either through public hangings or martial law.

The party didn't know the men's views before they qualified, said Jim Spearman, the party's executive director. Spearman learned of Lyon's views from the Montgomery Advertiser.

In a statement Friday, the party said Darby would remain on the ballot as a Democrat because there was no formal challenge against him within the timeframe set by its bylaws. Spearman declined to speculate about Lyon.

"His views ... were offensive to many people, across the board," Spearman said of Darby. "It's an embarrassment to the party."

Lyon said if elected, he would sponsor a law to get all illegal immigrants out of the state within 90 days, or be hanged in public.

"It would only take five or 10 getting killed and broadcast on CNN for it to send a clear message to not set foot in Alabama," said Lyon, a Pelham lawyer. "Anybody that breaks into my home is a threat to my life. I remember the Alamo."

Spearman called Lyon's proposal ridiculous and unconstitutional.

"I think you get some candidates who want to get name (recognition) by issuing outlandish statements sometimes," he said.

Darby, though, said he would support Lyon in his election bid.

"If he's willing to have public hangings of Mexicans, that sounds like he's the right man for the job," Darby said.

Darby's opponent in the Democratic primary, Mobile County District Attorney John Tyson Jr., said he doesn't consider Darby a serious opponent.

"This man is not connected to reality," Tyson said. "I think he's a crackpot trying to get some publicity."

Darby said if elected he would ask the governor to institute martial law to stop the influx of illegal immigrants into Alabama. If illegal immigrants attempt to evade law enforcement, they "should be shot on sight," he said.

He said the number of Jews killed in World War II has been grossly exaggerated, and Jews must leave if the United States is to save itself.

"It would be good for Iran to blow Israel off the map," he said.

Darby, who recently spoke to a group in New Jersey whose focus is to promote equal rights for whites, said the Democratic Party itself is racist because black lawmakers try to extort money from white candidates like himself.

 1 in 7 Mexican workers migrates -- most send money home

Washington -- The current migration of Mexicans and Central Americans to the United States is one of the largest diasporas in modern history, experts say.

Roughly 10 percent of Mexico's population of about 107 million is now living in the United States, estimates show. About 15 percent of Mexico's labor force is working in the United States. One in every 7 Mexican workers migrates to the United States.

Mass migration from Mexico began more than a century ago. It is deeply embedded in the history, culture and economies of both nations. The current wave began with Mexico's economic crisis in 1982, accelerated sharply in the 1990s with the U.S. economic boom, and today has reached record dimensions.

It is unlikely to ebb anytime soon.

"There is no scenario outside of catastrophic attack on the United States that would make immigration stop," said Demetrios Papademetriou, president of the Migration Policy Institute, a nonpartisan think tank.

The fierce immigration debate now under way in Congress focuses almost exclusively on the U.S. side of the equation. Senate legislation attempts to reduce the flow by hardening the border, sanctioning employers who hire illegal migrants, and expanding avenues for legal immigration. The House passed a bill focused solely on U.S. enforcement.

Yet whatever the United States decides about immigration will have a huge impacton its closest neighbors, especially Mexico.

What happens in Mexico, by turn, has a big effect on immigration flows to the United States. Those events include a hotly contested election six weeks away that pits a leftist populist against a market-oriented heir to President Vicente Fox.

"We want Mexico to look like Canada," said Stephen Haber, director of Stanford University's Social Science History Institute and a Latin America specialist at the Hoover Institution. "That's the optimal for the United States. We never talk about instability in Canada. We're never concerned about a Canadian security problem. Because Canada is wealthy and stable. It's so wealthy and stable we barely know it's there most of the time. That's the optimal for Mexico: a wealthy and stable country."

What isn't wanted, Haber said, "is an unstable country on your border, especially an unstable country that hates you."

Three-quarters of the estimated 12 million illegal migrants in the United States come from Mexico and Central America. Mexicans make up 56 percent of the unauthorized U.S. migrant population, according to the Pew Hispanic Center. Another 22 percent come from elsewhere in Latin America, mainly Central America and the Andean countries. These same countries send many of the half-million new illegal immigrants who arrive each year.

Migration is profoundly altering Mexico and Central America. Entire rural communities are nearly bereft of working-age men. The town of Tendeparacua, in the Mexican state of Michoacan, had 6,000 residents in 1985, and now has 600, according to news reports. In five Mexican states, the money migrants send home exceeds locally generated income, one study found.

Last year, Mexico received a record $20 billion in remittances from migrant workers. That is equal to Mexico's 2004 income from oil exports and dwarfing tourism revenue.

Arriving in small monthly transfers of $100 and $200, remittances have formed a vast river of "migra-dollars" that now exceeds lending by multilateral development agencies and foreign direct investment combined, according to the Inter-American Development Bank.

The money Mexican migrants send home almost equals the U.S. foreign aid budget for the entire world, said Arturo Valenzuela, director of the Center for Latin American Studies at Georgetown University and former head of Inter-American Affairs at the National Security Council during the Clinton administration.

"Where are we going to come up with $20 billion?" to ensure stability in Mexico, Valenzuela asked at a recent conference. "Has anybody in the raging immigration debate over the last few weeks thought, could it be good for the fundamental interests of the United States ... to serve as something of a safety valve for those that can't be employed in Mexico?"

Migration has caused significant social disruption in Mexico, though research is scant, said B. Lindsay Lowell, director of policy studies at the Institute for the Study of International Migration at Georgetown University.

"We do know that it can break up families, and has done so in many traditional sending areas," he said. "The husband comes to the United States and stays for many years. His wife is on her own with the children. In some cases, the couple comes to the United States and leaves their children behind with relatives."

The migration is driven in part, experts say, by the large income differentials between the two nations. A rural Latin American migrant may earn 10 times in the United States what he or she can earn at home.

But an equally intense pull comes from U.S. employers, including private households, who employ large numbers of illegal immigrants as nannies, housekeepers and caregivers, said Jeffery Passel, a senior demographer at the Pew Hispanic Center.

The U.S. information economy has created a split labor market, one with a powerful demand for high- and low-skilled workers, economists say.

While U.S. professionals toil in office buildings, others come to clean their offices, prepare their food and provide the host of services that support modern life. In a bygone era, teenagers, women and rural U.S. migrants filled these jobs. The U.S. labor market offers opportunities to "a younger, vibrant labor force and Mexican immigration has been filling that void," said Armand Peschard-Sverdrup, director of the Mexico Project for the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

U.S. demand has driven a record increase in wages for newly arrived immigrants, about 30 percent between 1994 and 2000, according to Lowell. The migration has also raised average wages in Mexico by 8 to 9 percent, economists estimate. As the first U.S. Baby Boomers turn 60 this year, this demand is only expected to intensify.

Once migration starts, social and economic networks sustain and fuel it, which explains in part why flows have not fallen despite solid economic growth in Mexico.

Most illegal immigrants from Mexico and Central America have not completed high school, although education levels are rising. Harvard economist George Borjas found that in 2000, 63 percent of Mexican immigrants had not finished high school.

New immigrants are much more broadly dispersed than previous waves. A lower percentage are going to the traditional magnet states such as California and New York. The fastest-growing destinations for new arrivals, according to demographer William Frey of the Brookings Institution, are North Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia, Nevada, Arizona, Iowa and Nebraska.

This geographic dispersal may account in part for rising public discontent over immigration, many believe. Migrant workers have also shifted from the fields to the cities, working in hotels, restaurants and construction, where they are more visible to the public.

Mexico is aging too, which will eventually cause migration to ebb. Its population trails the U.S. age profile by 30 years. By then, demographers expect Mexico may be importing labor.

While migration has long served as a safety valve for Mexico, the current wave may also be hindering the political and economic reforms that most agree are needed -- in education, taxes, energy, agriculture and law, where systemic corruption is a serious barrier to growth.

cont'd

"The good news is that a million Mexicans were on the street recently demanding good jobs and good government and justice," Roger Noriega, former assistant secretary of state for Western Hemisphere affairs, told a recent panel at the American Enterprise Institute. "The bad news is they were marching in someone else's country. Every day, thousands of Mexico's most industrious people leave their families behind ... leading many to wonder why Mexico's political class is not capable of creating economic opportunity for its citizens in a land rich in mineral wealth, hydrocarbons, agricultural potential and human capital."

The United States is not the only country that shares a long land border with a poorer nation. So does Germany, with Poland. France once did with Spain. Many point to Europe's unification as a better way to integrate the North American economies without disruptive migration flows.

Before the European Union opened its labor markets, its wealthier countries invested billions of dollars to develop the economies of its poorer members -- at the time, Spain, Portugal and Greece -- that had been sending migrants abroad. Since then, Spain has become the economic engine of Europe, and this month opened its labor market to Poland. The Irish, who once fled economic calamity by the millions to the United States, are today having their gas pumped by Eastern Europeans.

Many contend that U.S. investment in Mexico would be less expensive and more effective than a wall. Poorly developed Mexican credit markets make it all but impossible for a low-income family to get a mortgage.

If, when the North American Free Trade Agreement was signed in 1994, "the United States had approached Mexico and its integration into the North American economy in the same way that the European Union approached Spain and Portugal in 1986, we wouldn't have an immigration problem now," said Princeton University sociologist Douglas Massey, co-director of the Mexican Migration Project, a survey of Mexican migrants.

Given the predominance of Mexicans and Central Americans in illegal immigration to the United States, Papademetriou wonders why the Senate's guest worker program would be open to all comers, if it is intended to provide temporary workers for the U.S. market.

"If 60 percent of our illegal immigration comes from a single country, and another 20 percent comes through that country, logic would say the vast majority of visas should go to the country of origin," he said. "The last thing you would do is create a global temporary worker program, as if somehow we should need Bangladeshis or Russians to pick our fruits and vegetables."

Targeted visas could also leverage Mexican cooperation in undertaking politically difficult reforms, and would be more likely to keep guest workers temporary. "You keep it a neighborhood project," Papademetriou said, "so you have people going back and forth visiting their families, not spending thousands of dollars to come from all over the Earth. People who already have a network in place that will support them in the United States, that will help them find jobs."

Given that Mexico is the second-largest U.S. trading partner, the two nations' economic integration is well under way, and labor is part of that, experts say.

Even a new wall -- already under construction on the border with Mexico with bits of triple fencing here and pieces of National Guard units there -- has not stopped migrants entering yet and probably works more to trap them in the United States, many believe.

"These are human beings," said Audrey Singer, an immigration expert at the Brookings Institution. "It's not like a water faucet we can turn on and off. I think of managing them better -- because it's very hard to stop them."

Surge of volunteers expected to help illegal immigrants cross desert

A surge in the number of volunteers fanning out across Arizona's southern deserts to aid illegal immigrants is expected this summer.

The increase comes despite the ongoing prosecution of two volunteers arrested last summer on federal charges they intentionally conspired to transport illegal entrants, leaders of illegal immigrant aid groups said.

Shanti A. Sellz and Daniel M. Strauss, both 24, were arrested as they drove illegal entrants to a clinic on July 9 and face trial in October.

Leaders of two faith-based groups, No More Deaths and Samaritan Patrol, say they've signed up hundreds of volunteers to deliver food, water and medical aid to migrants illegally walking into the country from Mexico. No More Deaths alone has 500 registered volunteers, up from 300 last summer.

A third group, Humane Borders, puts water tanks in areas frequented by illegal migrants.

The groups are trying to reach an agreement with the U.S. Border Patrol spelling out legal ways they can provide humanitarian aid to illegal migrants.

The biggest issue is what to do when volunteers come across migrants they believe need immediate medical attention, the same situation that Sellz and Strauss contend led to their arrests.

No More Deaths legal adviser Margo Cowan said she's presented a draft agreement to the U.S. Border Patrol spelling out how to deal with similar situations.

But Michael Nicley, chief of the Border Patrol's Tucson Sector, says he hasn't signed it. He said he is trying to maintain good relations with the aid groups but it is never right to transport illegal entrants, even if they're gravely ill. He said anyone who comes across an ill migrant should call the Border Patrol.

"If someone has a heart attack, then they need to summon emergency medical care," he said. "The smart way is not to load them in a vehicle and drive them to Tucson."

Cowan said her group is looking forward to "a good working collaboration with the Border Patrol this summer," and Border Patrol agents will attend No More Deaths training sessions.

"We're going to do everything we can to work with the U.S. to save lives. We're not picking fights," Cowan said.

Since Oct. 1, federal records show 73 migrants have died in the Border Patrol's Tucson Sector, which runs from the New Mexico line to the western edge of Pima County, most caused by heat exhaustion and dehydration.

A total of 216 deaths, including women and children, were recorded in the Tucson Sector from Oct. 1, 2004 through Sept. 30, 2005.

Bush's Spanish Lessons
For President Bush, immigration isn't a dry policy debate. It's personal. Start with the Mexican-born American citizen who tends his house and helped raise his kids.

President George W. Bush seemed unusually heartfelt when he addressed the nation last week on immigration reform. For the president, immigration is not just a matter of politics or policy, it's personal. Bush has always been drawn to stories of Latino immigrants who came up by their bootstraps. In an interview with Hispanic Magazine in 2004, he described Paula Rendón, "who came up from Mexico to work in our house" when Bush was a boy growing up in Midland, Texas. "She loved me. She chewed me out. She tried to shape me up," said Bush. "And I have grown to love her like a second mom." Bush recalled Rendón's pride in seeing "her grandkids go to college for the first time."

Bush has another inspiring example close to home. For more than a decade, Maria Galvan, 53, has worked for Bush, looked after his daughters, befriended his wife and won the affection of the First Family for her loyalty, decency and hard work. As governor of Texas, Bush encouraged his housekeeper to become a U.S. citizen. Bush's own brother, Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, married a Latino, and Jeb's eldest son, George P. Bush, is seen as a candidate to go into the family business.

Bush has a history of promoting Latinos, most notably Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, who recently told CNN's Wolf Blitzer that "it's unclear" whether his grandparents emigrated legally from Mexico. Bush has always spoken emotionally about Gonzales, the son of hard-working but uneducated migrant workers. Bush recognized early on that inspiring Latino family stories could be a boon to the Republican Party. "He appreciates how close Latino families are with each other," says Israel Hernandez, an early campaign aide whom Bush hired after hearing his family story. "For a long time, he's talked about how these are the qualities he thinks the party represents. He has always talked about immigration in a very compassionate way." But the president's willingness to help illegal immigrants on the path to citizenship sets him apart from many vocal conservatives in the GOP. The divide could paralyze the effort to bring much-needed reform to the nation's immigration laws. The issue has become, in a way, too personal: a source of more heat than light in the body politic.

There is general agreement in Congress over the need to get control of the borders and enforce existing immigration laws. Last week Bush proposed a plan that could position up to 6,000 National Guard troops along the Mexican border for a year or so while beefing up the Border Patrol (from about 12,000 to 18,000 by 2008). The troops would not be sent to "militarize" the border with Mexico, Bush hastened to add, or even to arrest illegals coming over the border, but rather to provide logistical support, monitor surveillance cameras and do construction. Bush proposed building high-tech fences in urban corridors to help staunch the flow, as well as deploying a host of new gizmos like motion sensors and unmanned aerial drones.

Bush also put forth a "temporary-worker program" to "match willing foreign workers with willing American employers for jobs Americans are not doing." Such a program would probably be acceptable to House conservatives, according to a GOP leadership aide who declined to be identified discussing politically sensitive matters. But any plan that "smacks of amnesty"—that offers a way for the roughly 12 million illegal immigrants now in the United States to become citizens—is a nonstarter, according to this aide. The aide said that House Judiciary Committee chairman James Sensenbrenner would block a plan, proposed by Bush, that would let illegals apply for citizenship after spending five years in the United States, learning English and paying a fine and back taxes. (As a sop to conservatives, the Senate last week passed a bill making English the national language of the United States.)

"We must honor the great American tradition of the melting pot," Bush said last week. He has been dipping into it ever since he got into politics. His first campaign aide, when he was a managing partner of the Texas Rangers Major League Baseball team and thinking about a run for governor, was Hernandez. Born in a tiny border town, son of a Mexican immigrant, Hernandez was the first in his family to go to college. Driving around the state, "we would joke around and talk and sometimes switch into Spanish," recalls Hernandez, who is now assistant secretary of Commerce for trade promotion. As co-chairman of the 1996 Republican National Convention in San Diego, Bush was dismayed by the anti-immigration rhetoric of Pete Wilson, California's governor at the time, according to Hernandez. Bush saw that Hispanics shared the family values pushed by the Republican Party—and represented a growing voting bloc that Republicans ignored at their peril. During the 2000 election, Bush's catchphrase was "Family values do not stop at the Rio Grande."

Bush had his own housekeeper as an example. Emigrating from a small village in Mexico with her daughter sometime in the mid-'80s, Galvan worked as a domestic for several families in Austin, Texas, before getting a job at the Governor's Mansion just as Bush moved in with his family in 1995, when the twins were 12 years old. According to Anne DeBois, who was the mansion's chief administrator, Galvan taught herself English and how to read. Bush "encouraged her heavily to get her citizenship," says DeBois, who says that Galvan was a legal immigrant with a green card when she started work there. (The White House last week refused to comment on Galvan, except to say that she is a U.S. citizen; White House aides were silent on how she entered the country and what her legal status was at the time.) The Bushes liked Galvan so much that they brought her to Washington in 2001. She lives in the White House, travels with the First Family and looks after their beloved dogs. She has advised the White House chefs on the Bushes' favorite Mexican foods and is said by White House insiders, who refuse to be identified discussing First Family matters, to be "part of the family," which is unusual for staff in the formal, institutionalized Executive Mansion. Laura Bush has included Galvan as a guest at some of her social lunches.

Though the needs of Latinos have always been part of Bush's portfolio as a self-proclaimed "compassionate conservative," immigration reform took a back seat to education and national security during the first five years of the Bush presidency. Meanwhile, as illegal immigrants overwhelmed social services and drove up crime, not just in border states but across the country, a backlash was setting in. Last winter the House of Representatives passed a bill to make illegal immigration a felony, though how the House proposed to arrest and deport 12 million people was left unclear.

At the time, the Bush administration apparently figured that the Senate would "fix" any immigration bill by adding pro-visions for guest workers and a plan to allow illegals to become citizens after paying their dues. But public anger at illegals is peaking. Radio-show host Rush Limbaugh is saying he has never seen his followers so riled up. And when Bush's political adviser Karl Rove met privately with House Republicans after the president's speech, the lawmakers were still in a rebellious mood. On two major occasions—the No Child Left Behind education law in 2002 and Medicare reform in 2003—Bush pressed the House to work with Democratic Sen. Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts. Never again, says GOP Rep. Ric Keller of Florida, who pungently told Rove: "If you get into bed with Ted Kennedy, you're going to get more than sleep."

cont'd

Bush is trying to take the high road. "We cannot build a unified country by inciting people to anger, or playing on anyone's fears or exploiting the issue of immigration for political gain," Bush said from the Oval Office. But at least half the House Republicans see a hard line on immigration as smart politics in an election year when the Democrats are threatening to win back control of Congress. With his approval ratings sagging into the mid-30s, Bush probably lacks the clout to force the House GOP to accept a Senate bill that includes steps for illegals to become citizens. The result would be no reforms at all, though it is possible that something could be salvaged in a lame-duck session after the November elections, when political passions have cooled a bit.

Meanwhile, angry citizens continue to take matters into their own hands. Five hours after Bush took off from Yuma, Ariz., where he had staged a photo op driving a dune buggy around the Mexican border, David (Flash) Sharrar stood in a dusty farmyard to brief a circle of so-called Yuma Patriots. They were preparing to go off on a nocturnal search for illegals coming across the border. Sharrar went over the rules and the checklist. No weapons, no altercations. The Patriots are armed only with bright flashlights, which they beam on the illegals as they radio the Border Patrol for help, and with Mace, in the unlikely event one of the intruders attacks them.

"I don't think the president is going to do a damn thing about Yuma," said Sharrar, 51, part owner of an auto-transmission shop. He launched the Yuma Patriots a year ago with his business partner after some illegals carjacked his 21-year-old son's Ford Explorer at gunpoint. The thieves also stole a cell phone and $700 in combat pay—Sharrar's son had just returned from serving as a soldier in Iraq.

Sharrar led the Patriots in prayer ("Lord, these great men and women are here to stop an epidemic that is destroying our country ... "). Then the group, which claims to have caught and turned over 1,500 illegal migrants in the past year, went out and caught nine more. Until the borders are closed and the laws reformed, most of them will try to come back.

L.A.'s Skid Row Immigrant Population Grows

 A shadow population lives among the estimated 14,000 homeless on Skid Row.

A growing number of immigrants are bedding down each night in parks, abandoned buildings and cardboard boxes, finding refuge in camouflaged encampments under freeway overpasses and bridges.

 Mostly from Mexico and Central America, many entered the United States illegally in search of a steady job _ and fell far short. They largely shun the free meals and beds offered on Skid Row, and according to service providers are less likely to be drug addicted or mentally disturbed than other homeless in the destitute area on the fringe of downtown.

"Our Spanish-speaking immigrant homeless feel uncomfortable going to existing shelters because of the language barrier or fear of violence," said the Rev. Steve Niskanen of downtown's La Placita Church.

Though there is no official count, like the population of immigrants nationally, the homeless immigrant population is growing, according to people who interact with and serve them.

The homeless immigrant problem dates to the mid-1980s when unaccompanied youths from Central America, some as young as 9, started entering the country, said the Rev. Richard Estrada, executive director of Jovenes Inc., an outreach center and shelter for homeless immigrant youths.

"The vast majority are looking for work, and they are decent people. They want to send money home," Estrada said. "If you listen to them and hear their stories, they are not coming here because they want to abuse the social welfare system, they are simply here because they want to work."

One of those immigrants is Jose Ramirez, who entered the country illegally less than a year ago from Jalisco, Mexico.

Ramirez, 23, came to Los Angeles with a sixth-grade education. As a day laborer, he can make about $80 a day working construction jobs, far more than the $13 a day he would earn in Mexico.

He sleeps under a bridge and at Dolores Mission Church east of downtown because he can't afford to rent an apartment. He still sends half of what he earns to younger brothers in Mexico, whom he wants to stay in school and get ahead.

"I thought it would be better here," Ramirez said in Spanish. "But no matter what, life is better here than there."

Mexico Works to Bar Non-Natives From Jobs

MEXICO CITY - If Arnold Schwarzenegger had migrated to Mexico instead of the United States, he couldn't be a governor. If Argentina native Sergio Villanueva, firefighter hero of the Sept. 11 attacks, had moved to Tecate instead of New York, he wouldn't have been allowed on the force.

Even as Mexico presses the United States to grant unrestricted citizenship to millions of undocumented Mexican migrants, its officials at times calling U.S. policies "xenophobic," Mexico places daunting limitations on anyone born outside its territory.

In the United States, only two posts — the presidency and vice presidency — are reserved for the native born.

In Mexico, non-natives are banned from those and thousands of other jobs, even if they are legal, naturalized citizens.

Foreign-born Mexicans can't hold seats in either house of the congress. They're also banned from state legislatures, the Supreme Court and all governorships. Many states ban foreign-born Mexicans from spots on town councils. And Mexico's Constitution reserves almost all federal posts, and any position in the military and merchant marine, for "native-born Mexicans."

Recently the Mexican government has gone even further. Since at least 2003, it has encouraged cities to ban non-natives from such local jobs as firefighters, police and judges.

Mexico's Interior Department — which recommended the bans as part of "model" city statutes it distributed to local officials — could cite no basis for extending the bans to local posts.

After being contacted by The Associated Press about the issue, officials changed the wording in two statutes to delete the "native-born" requirements, although they said the modifications had nothing to do with AP's inquiries.

"These statutes have been under review for some time, and they have, or are about to be, changed," said an Interior Department official, who was not authorized to be quoted by name.

But because the "model" statues are fill-in-the-blanks guides for framing local legislation, many cities across Mexico have already enacted such bans. They have done so even though foreigners constitute a tiny percentage of the population and pose little threat to Mexico's job market.

The foreign-born make up just 0.5 percent of Mexico's 105 million people, compared with about 13 percent in the United States, which has a total population of 299 million. Mexico grants citizenship to about 3,000 people a year, compared to the U.S. average of almost a half million.

"There is a need for a little more openness, both at the policy level and in business affairs," said David Kim, president of the Mexico-Korea Association, which represents the estimated 20,000 South Koreans in Mexico, many of them naturalized citizens.

"The immigration laws are very difficult ... and they put obstacles in the way that make it more difficult to compete," Kim said, although most foreigners don't come to Mexico seeking government posts.

J. Michael Waller, of the Center for Security Policy in Washington, was more blunt. "If American policy-makers are looking for legal models on which to base new laws restricting immigration and expelling foreign lawbreakers, they have a handy guide: the Mexican constitution," he said in a recent article on immigration.

Some Mexicans agree their country needs to change.

"This country needs to be more open," said Francisco Hidalgo, a 50-year-old video producer. "In part to modernize itself, and in part because of the contribution these (foreign-born) people could make."

Others express a more common view, a distrust of foreigners that academics say is rooted in Mexico's history of foreign invasions and the loss of territory in the 1847-48 Mexican-American War.

Speaking of the hundreds of thousands of Central Americans who enter Mexico each year, chauffeur Arnulfo Hernandez, 57, said: "The ones who want to reach the United States, we should send them up there. But the ones who want to stay here, it's usually for bad reasons, because they want to steal or do drugs."

Some say progress is being made. Mexico's president no longer is required to be at least a second-generation native-born. That law was changed in 1999 to clear the way for candidates who have one foreign-born parent, like President Vicente Fox, whose mother is from Spain.

But the pace of change is slow. The state of Baja California still requires candidates for the state legislature to prove both their parents were native born.

Citizenship by Birthright Up for Debate

 Laila Montezuma was 16 when she sneaked across the Rio Grande from Mexico with her mother, only to be abandoned by the smuggler paid to get them into the United States. They had to hire another "coyote" to reach Houston.

But Montezuma's own daughter will be spared those struggles. Even if Montezuma and her husband are both deported for being illegal immigrants, little Alma could eventually return to enjoy the opportunities her parents sought here.

 "She's not going to have to fight for anything for the simple fact that she was born here," Montezuma said as her infant daughter played in a waiting room at a pediatrics clinic in suburban Atlanta.

About 2 million families face the risk of being split up because the children are U.S.-born citizens but the parents are illegal immigrants. At least one lawmaker has proposed ending citizenship by birthright, restricting automatic citizenship at birth to children of U.S. citizens and legal residents.

The United States has one of the most liberal citizenship policies in the world, granting citizenship to anyone born on U.S. soil based on an 1868 constitutional amendment. About 3.1 million children are U.S. citizens by birth, even though one or both of their parents are here illegally, according to estimates by the Pew Hispanic Center.

Supporters of that measure say it is the only way to fully integrate immigrants.

"A person has a stake in the society where they are, and you can't beat that as an integration measure," said Demetrios Papademetriou, president of the Migration Policy Institute, a Washington think tank.

But critics who want to eliminate the right insist it is a magnet for illegal immigration and an obstacle in efforts to deport millions of illegal immigrants.

"It's not as large a magnet as jobs, but it will be easier to solve the problem of illegal immigration if we avoid the mixed-family situation," said Rep. Nathan Deal, R-Ga., who tried unsuccessfully to revoke the citizenship-by-birth right in the immigration bill passed by the House in December.

Deal and other advocates of stricter controls say immigrants come to the U.S. in part to have "anchor babies" _ children who can offer their parents some immunity from deportation and then petition for them to receive green cards after turning 21. But just how many immigrants do so is unclear.

Border Patrol agents rescue one or two immigrants in labor every year.

Daniel McClafferty, part of a Border Patrol medical team, found an 18- year-old woman in shock with her newborn daughter last month about 20 miles north of the border in the desolate foothills of the Arizona desert.

A fellow immigrant had helped deliver the baby, cutting her umbilical cord with a nail clipper. McClafferty helped evacuate the mother on a helicopter and carry the baby to the closest road, four miles away.

Alejandro Ramos with the Mexican consulate in Tucson, Ariz., said the mother had asked for a U.S. birth certificate for her daughter, but her whereabouts were unknown.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers try not to separate families but they do "arrest and remove people every day who have dependents in the U.S.," said agency spokesman Marc Raimondi.

Immigrants who are ordered deported can ask a judge to let them stay if, among other things, they are able to prove their deportation would be an "extremely unusual hardship" to a U.S.-citizen spouse or child.

Immigration judges typically consider whether children can speak the language of their parents' native country, whether they have enough money to survive and whether they have serious health problems, said Elaine Komis of the Executive Office of Immigration Review, which runs federal immigration courts.

Even though Luz Maria Medrano of Las Vegas was ordered deported along with her second husband, the couple won permanent residency after a six-year legal battle when a judge found her 7-year-old, U.S.-born son would not receive proper treatment for his learning disability in Mexico.

She's especially happy for her other 17-year-old son, who was born in Mexico. She carried him across the Arizona desert when he was 12 months old to flee an abusive ex-husband.

"I felt very responsible," said Medrano, a 40-year-old real estate agent. "It was for him that I would have suffered more if they had sent us to Mexico. Now the future for him will be grandiose. Here, whatever you do, you'll be successful at."

Back at the suburban Atlanta clinic serving Spanish-speaking families, Irma Baldonado recalled being two months pregnant when she immigrated illegally to California. She left her first-born daughter in El Salvador with her mother and has not seen the child in seven years. She hopes her two children who were born here will one day get papers for their 10-year-old sister to join them.

"It's what I wish for the most," Baldonado said. "Then it will all have been worth it."

An illegal alien who can legally sue


VICTOR MANUEL CABALLERO says he only wanted a decent job when he sneaked across the border from Mexico five years ago. Thanks to a ruling last week by the state Supreme Court, he has achieved a special American status even though he still lives here illegally:

He can collect damages for being hurt in an auto accident.

We hear much these days about illegal immigrants -- how desperate they are for good jobs here, how many risk their lives to slip across the border, how so many now hope to pursue their lives in America with some measure of forgiveness and amnesty even though they clearly violated immigration laws.

The case of Victor Manuel Cabellero falls into a whole new zone of troubles. He not only lives here illegally; the state Supreme Court has now opened a legal door for him and other undocumented immigrants to collect from a special state fund set up to protect anyone hurt in a car accident with an uninsured driver.

To put it another way: Victor Caballero may not have the legal right to actually live in New Jersey, but New Jersey says he has the legal right to receive generous benefits for being here.

Go figure.

If nothing else, Caballero's story illustrates how meaningless immigration laws are and how inept our government has become in dealing with this problem.

He was 17 when he left his native Mexico and illegally crossed into the United States in early 2001. He went first to Los Angeles, then bought a ticket on a commercial flight to New Jersey and headed for the Shore town of Bradley Beach.

This was hardly a haphazard trip. According to court papers, Caballero had carefully planned his travel itinerary – not unusual for illegal immigrants.

Caballero's cousins lived in Bradley Beach. Indeed, Caballero's brother, Sandro, had already made the trek from Mexico to Bradley Beach in 1996, and his father followed – illegally -- three years later, settling in nearby Belmar. Caballero's mother arrived in 2003, also illegally, court papers say.

When Victor arrived, he moved into an apartment with Sandro and two cousins. Victor quickly got a job in a restaurant. But after two months, he moved up to a computer repair job, earning around $400 a week.

That may not seem like much, but in Mexico, Caballero was making only $6 a day. The computer job was not easy either. Caballero routinely worked up to 15 hours straight. His day began at 5 a.m., when he would be picked up by a co-worker, 19-year-old Ricardo Martinez.

Only two weeks into the computer job, court papers say, Martinez fell asleep at the wheel one morning. The car veered off the road and struck a parked tractor trailer.

Martinez was lucky -- he walked away from the accident with only cuts and bruises. Caballero was badly hurt, though.

He was transported to the Jersey Shore Medical Center where surgeons repaired injuries to his abdomen and intestines. Caballero stayed a week at the hospital, then needed another six weeks to recover before he could return to work. The cost: $38,300 in medical bills and $1,482 in lost wages.

Caballero had no medical insurance, nor did his family. But that wasn't the end of the problems.

Police and hospital officials turned to Ricardo Martinez, the driver of the car. Would his insurance cover Caballero?

Not a chance.

Martinez was not only driving without car insurance when he hit the tractor-trailer, but his car registration – from Pennsylvania, police say – had expired. Instead of throwing him in jail, cops merely ticketed Martinez and let him go.

And then, things got worse.

Martinez disappeared. Authorities now believe he, too, was living illegally in New Jersey. The difference, of course, was that Caballero had some serious hospital bills to pay.

Caballero's father did what most Americans would do when faced with having to pay bills for an auto accident they did not cause. He called a lawyer.

Caballero's attorney, Victor Covelli of Belmar, says his client was worried that he would be deported when he filed suit against fellow illegal immigrant, Ricardo Martinez. Complicating the issue, Caballero was also suing to collect from a special New Jersey fund for anyone injured in an accident with an uninsured driver. But like those police who handled the accident and let Martinez go with only a traffic ticket, court officers looked the other way and did not arrest and deport Caballero when he testified in his lawsuit.

Caballero lost twice, when courts ruled he was not a legal resident and therefore had no right to the special accident fund. But last week, the state Supreme Court ruled in his favor, declaring him a resident even though he was here illegally.

How did the Supreme Court reach such a conclusion? Well, consider this line of reasoning from the opinion authored by Supreme Court Justice James Zazzali:

"We recognize the apparent paradox that exists when an undocumented alien intends to remain in this state but that alien, because of his or her illegal status, is subject to deportation at any time ... The fact that an undocumented alien may some day be forced to return to his or her homeland does not necessarily defeat the intent to remain. That is especially true in light of the uncertain nature of deportation."

In other words, the fact that Caballero reached New Jersey makes him a resident, even though he broke the law to get here. Maybe Justice Zazzali and the entire Supreme Court should consider a class in remedial logic.

Victor Manuel Caballero is now 23. His lawyer will not divulge his address, only saying that that Caballero now lives with his girlfriend and their baby "in the Lakewood area" and still works at the computer repair shop. Because of the auto accident, Caballero cannot lift heavy computers, cannot run, has trouble sleeping, and cannot eat "some foods that he enjoyed before the accident," the Supreme Court ruled.

The $38,300 bill from the medical bill was paid by a special hospital charity fund. So why is Caballero suing?

His lawyer says the Supreme Court ruling makes him eligible to collect up to $15,000 -- for pain and suffering.

Welcome to America.

Senate Vote Saves Immigration Bill Chances

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Senate rejected a California Democrat's plan to allow the estimated 12 million illegal immigrants in the country to remain, work and eventually become Americans, preserving a fragile bipartisan coalition needed to pass the bill.

Several lawmakers who voted against the proposal offered by Sen. Dianne Feinstein on Tuesday said they did so reluctantly, but out of necessity to ensure survival of the broader immigration bill. The legislation is expected to win Senate passage Wednesday or Thursday.

"This legislation is on the edge of the ledge as it is," said Sen. Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania, one of the Republicans supporting a delicate compromise that has kept the bill alive - letting two-thirds of illegal immigrants stay but making the other third leave.

Feinstein's amendment, defeated 61 to 37, would have supplanted the compromise that allows illegal immigrants here five years or more to stay and work six years and seek legal residency after paying back taxes and fines and showing they were learning English.

Those in the country two to five years under the compromise would have to go to a point of entry, exit and file an application to return as a guest worker. Those here less than two years must leave the country, but could apply from their native country to return as a guest worker and wait in line to get a visa.

"I have come to believe that the three-tiered system is unworkable, that it would create a bureaucratic nightmare and it would lead to substantial fraud," Feinstein said Tuesday.

Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, said the compromise bill could mean losing Latinos in his state who have helped revive some of its small towns by buying homes and starting small businesses.

Feinstein offered the plan just before Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist set the stage for a preliminary vote Wednesday that could quickly bring the bill to a final vote. The bill appears headed for passage.

A bigger fight on the bill is still to come - when the House and Senate meet to negotiate a compromise bill. The House passed an enforcement-only bill that makes illegal immigrants felons, cracks down on hiring of illegal immigrants and steps up border security. It offers no path to citizenship or a guest worker program, which critics say is amnesty.

"If we are lucky, the House of Representatives will say it's got to be better," Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., said of the Senate bill after predicting Monday it would pass.

Feinstein's proposal faced an uphill climb. Republican Sen. John Cornyn of Texas said it suffered the same "infirmities" as the bipartisan bill approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee, which offered citizenship for all illegal immigrants.

Feinstein's proposal required all illegal immigrants to register with the Department of Homeland Security, get fingerprinted and go through criminal and national security background checks.

They would get an "orange card" encrypted with identifying information and signifying they are legal workers after passing the background checks, demonstrating an understanding of English, U.S. history and government and paying back taxes and a $2,000 fine to apply.

They would go to the back of the line and could apply for legal permanent residency when a number they are given is reached.

Also Monday, the Senate showed support for President Bush's plan to deploy National Guard troops to the border by endorsing an amendment authorizing governors to order their state's Guard units to perform duties in border states.

Immigration bill nears passage in U.S. Senate

A sweeping immigration law overhaul that would toughen border security and give millions of illegal immigrants a path to U.S. citizenship headed for Senate passage on Thursday as backers prepared for a bruising battle with the House of Representatives.

The Senate was due to vote on passage later on Thursday. The bipartisan bill and the coalition pushing it forward withstood several attempts by opponents to dramatically change the legislation and in some cases to kill it outright.

Backers said they hope a strong bipartisan vote will help them in negotiation with the House. Sen. Mel Martinez of Florida said he hoped to get a strong showing for the bill from his fellow Republicans.

The issue divides Republicans and several opponents said they hope to get another shot at reworking the bill during Senate negotiations with the House, which passed a vastly different bill that steps up border security and enforcement, and could lead to deportation of many illegal immigrants.

"I am hopeful the House will save us from this bill," said Sen. John Ensign, a Nevada Republican.

The Senate and House bills have to be merged before a final measure can be sent to President George W. Bush for his signature. It is unclear whether the two chambers will be able to resolve their differences before the November congressional elections.

"The Senate has provisions that go far beyond (the House bill) and I don't underestimate the difficulties of the House and Senate trying to come together," said House Majority Leader John Boehner, an Ohio Republican.

Bush, mindful of the growing clout of Hispanic voters, backs a comprehensive approach close to the Senate bill. That measure couples border security and enforcement with a guest worker program and a plan to give some of the 11 million to 12 million illegal immigrants a way to become U.S. citizens.

Polls show immigration reform is important to Americans, and many Republicans believe that delivering to Bush a bill that he could sign into law would assuage some of voters' concerns and help their sagging poll ratings.

Many lawmakers say Bush will have to become deeply involved in the bargaining over a final bill for it to be agreed upon before the November elections, when Democrats hope to make their best showing in more than a decade.

 Bush, who has long supported immigration reform, has been trying to address conservative Republicans' concerns about border security. In a nationally televised address this month he said that thousands of National Guard troops would be deployed to help secure the leaky border with Mexico.

But that approach was dismissed by many conservatives in the House as inadequate.

Border checks choke crossings


CALAIS - Stepped up screening of travelers slowed traffic to a crawl at Maine's border stations earlier this week, creating long lines and causing some U.S. merchants to see red.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials increased their frequency of identification checks last weekend, saying it's not a new policy and the checking will continue. It caused delays of 40 minutes or longer at some crossings, and merchants worry that potential Canadian customers will turn around rather than wait in line.

"It's 100 percent checks for anyone over 14 and under 79 years of age," Charles Pelletier, the port director at Madawaska, said Tuesday. "We received a memo from the Boston Field Office [last weekend].

"I don't know if it's permanent, but it will continue for a period of time," Pelletier said. "New procedures are coming for January 2008. Maybe this is part of it."

President Bush has pushed for a passport-only entry into this country, although he has hinted in recent weeks at some kind of "flexibility."

Pelletier believes it may be a transition period to get people adjusted to the new procedures coming down the road. He believes the directive is for the entire northern border of the country, or at least for all border stations overseen by the Boston Field Office, which involves all of New England.

Ted Woo, a public information spokesman for U.S. Customs and Border Protection in Boston, said the practice is not new.

"We are increasing the frequency of checking identification," he said. "That's our job: to check who enters the country. This is not a special operation, and it is not a change in policy. It will continue."

He said the process would become faster when the passport is used for entry. In the meantime, he said, it is "increased security checks."

"Expect it to continue," Woo added.

On Wednesday he acknowledged that there had been some long delays and that border agents have begun using "mitigating factors" to ease the delays. As an example, he said, someone well known to agents who may cross the border several times a day may not have to stop each time and produce identification.

Photo identification cards such as a driver's license, a Maine identification card or passport (current or expired) are acceptable, but documents such as a birth certificate or voter registration card are also acceptable.

The rub comes when border officials have to type information into their computers. Passports are the only identification that can be scanned directly into their system.

It's unusual to find long lines at border crossings at this time of year, but that's what happened last weekend at various border crossings as federal officers asked to see driver's licenses or identification cards. They then had to keyboard in the person's name and other information. Travelers who encountered an agent with limited typing skills faced an excruciating wait.

Pelletier said the line in Madawaska was 40 minutes long Saturday during periods of higher traffic. Most of the time, he said, it was 20 to 25 minutes. In Calais, lines were longer and people were complaining that they had to wait for more than an hour in some cases.

While travelers are upset, merchants on the U.S. side of the border are hopping mad.

The stepped up ID checks began Friday, just in time for Canada's Victoria weekend, when Canadians head south to shop or to enjoy a holiday in the United States. This year border merchants anticipated seeing gold because the Canadian dollar was on par with the U.S. dollar for the first time in years. They were rubbing their hands, expecting a resurgence in business that has languished for years because of the differences in the values of the currencies.

But the long holiday weekend turned out to be a bad dream for merchants. Many Canadians caught in the glut of traffic turned around and went home.

The locals are not happy.

One American living in Canada - who has a passport - waited 25 minutes to cross Tuesday morning. "They were checking 100 percent - every person, every dog, every cat," she said. "This is going to kill Calais business."

Linda Howe, president of the St. Croix Valley Chamber of Commerce in Calais, said she'd heard from unhappy merchants. "Merchants felt finally the Canadian dollar is strong, finally saw some light at the end of the tunnel and wham, this hit them like a ton of bricks," she said.

The Chamber has contacted Maine's U.S. congressional delegation. "We hope that we won't have to deal with this all summer long," she said.

Sen. Susan Collins said she had contacted "officials with Customs and Border Patrol to express my concern about the serious traffic backups at the U.S.-Canada border. CBP has assured me that they will advise port directors at the border to use discretion to help relieve the tie-ups. This is especially important as we head into the busy Memorial Day weekend. I will continue to press Customs and Border Patrol to improve its efficiency as we attempt to balance homeland security concerns with the practical reality of day-to-day life in border communities."

"This is going to have a profound effect on business in the community," Calais assistant City Manager Jim Porter said.

In Houlton, merchants reported no ill effects. In fact, several reported business as usual or better.

At Marden's in Houlton, management team member Karla Hersey quickly brushed off the idea that the identification policy might have affected business at the discount store.

"Heavens, no," Hersey said Tuesday afternoon. "Our Canadian business has increased. On the weekends, especially, our parking lot is packed with cars that have Canadian [license] plates. ... It's been really good."

The same was true at Doc's Place, a gas station and convenience store on the North Road. Manager Brian Williams said that the business, which is near Interstate 95, sees a lot of Canadian patrons. Thus far, he doesn't believe those numbers have dropped.

Although traffic at the Houlton port of entry was brisk Tuesday afternoon, there did not seem to be a significant delay in automobiles crossing into the United States.

The picture wasn't as rosy in Madawaska, where the stepped-up security was creating business problems.

"We've seen plenty of complaints the past two days," Dennis Michaud, executive director of the Greater Madawaska Chamber of Commerce, said Tuesday. "The calls are not only from businesses but local citizens going back and forth.

"I am also getting calls from Canadians saying they won't bother coming to the U.S.," he added. "They will stay home because they don't want the hassle at the border. They don't want to bother with it."

Citizens of the United States cannot be refused entry, but passage through the port of entry can be delayed for those not having photo identification cards while inquiries are made.

The Maine Tourism Association also is worried.

"Obviously any delay isn't good for us," Vaughn Stinson, chief executive officer of the MTA, said Tuesday. "We don't want people inconvenienced. My concern beyond this is the new border procedures that will go in another year or thereabouts where everybody has to have a passport."

Stinson said if the delays last, it will be a problem. "Anything beyond 10 minutes I hate to see," he said, "and 45 minutes I can see how people would be very short-tempered with that. Getting [in line] longer becomes much more unacceptable to the visitor."

U.S. Rep. Mike Michaud said Tuesday he'd received calls from Mainers who were tired of waiting at the border and was checking with U.S. Customs and Border Protection to see what is causing the delays.

Although there is a need for heightened alert during these difficult times, the congressman said the state's border with Canada was nothing like the southern border shared with Mexico.

"We can intelligently and responsibly manage the northern border in a way that ensures our security without unnecessarily hampering travel and commerce across the border," he said.

House Republican Firm on Immigration Bill

The House author of a border security bill that triggered massive street protests stood firm Friday against amnesty for illegal immigrants and predicted tough negotiations with the Senate on compromise legislation.

The Senate passed its sweeping bill 62-36 Thursday after two weeks of debate and difficult votes that tested the strength of a coalition of bipartisan senators who supported the opportunity for U.S. citizenship that their bill would give most of the estimated 11 million to 12 million people who are in this country illegally.

"This will set up a very difficult House-Senate conference committee because the approaches taken by the House and Senate on this issue have been 180 degrees apart," said Rep. James Sensenbrenner, chairman of the Judiciary Committee and principal author of the more stringent House bill.

"Amnesty is wrong," he told a news conference.

President Bush said Thursday that the House "began a national dialogue" when it passed an immigration bill last year and he said he "looked forward to working together" with lawmakers to produce a bill he could sign.

He declined to answer a question later about whether he thought the House and Senate could succeed in finding a compromise for their disparate positions on the issue.

But he did say that an effective measure would protect U.S. borders, make employers responsible for people they hire, create a temporary worker program, deal with the illegal immigrants already in the U.S. and "honor America's great tradition of the melting pot."

Soon after passing their bill, senators challenged the House to move away from its enforcement-only prescription and toward something more in line with what Bush wants.

Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., said he hoped the House would see the legislation as a rare opportunity. "We should seize this moment so America can move forward," he said.

Sen. Patrick Leahy described the Senate bill as a start. but said getting a final agreement "is still a 50-50 proposition."

Yet House Majority Leader John Boehner said House negotiators will oppose "troubling policies that encourage open borders and invite more illegal immigrants into our country."

"Our most important priority is to secure our borders and stop illegal immigration," said Boehner, R-Ohio.

GOP Rep. Peter King of New York, chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, said he would vote against any legislation that included amnesty or legalization for illegal immigrants. King is expected to be among the House negotiators.

Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., who voted for the Senate bill, said he would seek to have negotiations begin soon.

Republican Rep. Jeff Flake of Arizona, who sponsored an early version of the Senate bill in the House, urged House Speaker Dennis Hastert to follow Frist's lead "so we can begin the difficult task of reaching a consensus."

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C. argued for finishing the bill before the November elections.

"This is one problem that is not going to wait until the next election," Graham said. "If you win or lose because you make a hard decision, so be it."

Politics has been an undercurrent as the Senate has tried to write legislation that would satisfy unions, immigration hawks, businesses and advocates for Latinos, and other interests. Several leaders involved in the debate, including Frist and Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., are considering 2008 presidential runs.

Latinos are the fastest growing segment of the electorate. Thousands, including some illegal immigrants, joined street protests to denounce the House bill and call for broader legislation.

"The Latino community and the rest of the country want effective immigration reform that brings order and fairness to our system," said Janet Murguia, National Council of La Raza president.

Senate leaders agreed that their success in conference will depend greatly on Bush.

"Now the time has come for very active participation by the president," said Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa. "I believe the president will put a very heavy shoulder to the wheel."

A chief architect of the Senate bill, Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass., said he would "welcome the strong leadership of the president of the United States in this undertaking."

The House bill, which passed on a largely party-line vote last year, is generally limited to border enforcement. It would make all illegal immigrants subject to felony charges. It has no provision for either a new temporary worker program or citizenship for men, women and children unlawfully in the country.

The Senate bill, in contrast, would mark the most far-reaching changes in two decades by:

_Urging the hiring of 1,000 more Border Patrol agents this year and 14,000 by 2011.

_Endorsing Bush's plan for a short-term deployment of National Guard troops to states along the border with Mexico.

_Calling for the construction of 370 miles of fencing on the border.

The guest worker program would admit 200,000 individuals a year. They eventually could apply for a green card, which confers legal permanent residency.

A separate program envisions admission of an estimated 1.5 million immigrant farm workers who also may apply for permanent residency

For illegal immigrants, those in the country for five years could stay, keep working and eventually apply for citizenship. They would have to pay at least $3,250 in fines and fees, settle back taxes and learn English.

Illegal immigrants in the country for more than two years but less than five would have to travel to a point of entry before re-entering the United States legally and beginning the lengthy process of seeking citizenship.

An immigrant in the country illegally for less than two years would be required to leave with no guarantee of return.

Illegals without driver’s licenses register cars

Local police are nabbing growing numbers of illegal immigrants for unlicensed driving because porous state laws allow them to register business and personal vehicles without first getting driver’s licenses, a Herald review found.
     Police chiefs in several communities said the legal loophole, which grants special vehicle registration numbers to people without licenses, leads to risky conditions on the roadways as more and more illegal immigrants seek to drive without training or authority.

“It’s lawlessness,” Malden police Chief Kenneth Coye said. “There is no regard for standards . . . and I think there is a sense among a lot of people that it’s no big thing.”
   
    The problem has attracted the attention of Registry of Motor Vehicles officials, and a state lawmaker is crafting legislation to eliminate the loophole by requiring people to prove legal immigration status before registering vehicles.
   
    “As a country, we have been pretty lax in this area,” Sen. Richard R. Tisei (R-Wakefield) said of the loose regulations that create so much leeway for illegal immigrants. “We’re finding a whole mess of laws and regulations that provide tremendous loopholes.”
   
    Police officials say the state’s growing population of illegal immigrants - estimates put the figure between 175,000 and 250,000 people - has forced them to deal with local fallout on an increasing basis. Milford police Chief Thomas O’Loughlin said his officers regularly encounter illegal aliens driving without licenses, often in contractors’ trucks they are using to get to and from work.
   
    In some cases, he said, illegal aliens even have IRS tax identification numbers and state business registrations. “Hypocrisy is the rule of the day,” he said, referring to sporadic enforcement of immigration laws. “From the perspective of good government, it’s just winking and nodding. It’s sad.”
   
    The issue has inflamed passions on both sides of the immigration debate. Republicans in the state Senate passed two proposals last night to crack down on illegal aliens by creating a phone tip line to report illegals, and forcing courts to check a suspect’s legal status at arraignment. Neither measure has yet been signed into law.
   
    While law enforcement officials decry what they see as an erosion of the rule of law, immigrant advocates say the fact that people working illegally are obtaining tax IDs is evidence they are trying to to play by the rules.

“These people are already here, they’re already working and they need to be able to adjust their status,” advocate Ali Noorani said.
   
    Advocates say preventing illegal immigrants from registering vehicles will not improve road safety or stop the undocumented workers from driving.
   
    “The reality is that people need to drive and they will drive,” said Thomas Keown of the Irish Immigration Center. “We can face that reality or pretend it’s not there.”

White House compares illegal immigration to speeding

The White House on Friday said a Senate bill that would grant legal status to illegal immigrants is analogous to a traffic law that allows a speeder to pay a fine and continue driving.

"If you had a traffic ticket and you paid it, you're not forever a speeder, are you?" White House Press Secretary Tony Snow said in response to questions from The Examiner.

"So the fact is, you have paid your debt to society," he added. "And we have come up with a way to make sure that the debt to society gets paid. Then you move forward."

The "traffic ticket" analogy raised eyebrows on Capitol Hill, where many House Republicans regard illegal immigration as a grave crime.

"I don't know if Tony meant to trivialize it or not," said Will Adams, spokesman for Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colo. "But it's certainly misleading."

"The penalty for a speeding ticket is a fine," he added. "The penalty for being here illegally is being removed from this country. But the president doesn't want illegal aliens to go home."

Snow emphasized that illegals would have to pay fines, learn English and wait years for a chance at full citizenship. But Adams called that "a slap on the hand" compared to deportation.

"Here's a more apt analogy," he said. "You get stopped for speeding, and you say to the cop: "Hey listen, you're about to give me a $300 ticket. How about we make it 20 bucks and just call it even?"

Snow predicted that House Republicans would eventually drop their opposition to the Senate bill, which passed Thursday. The bill, which includes a guest worker program that would grant legal status to aliens, is headed to a conference committee for possible reconciliation with a House bill aimed at beefing up border security.

Snow suggested the guest worker program could be sold to even ardent opponents like Rep. James Sensenbrenner, R-Wisconsin, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee.

"Chairman Sensenbrenner, who's got some real problems with various aspects, has said publicly that the temporary worker program has merit," Snow said.

"There are areas in which members of the House are going to agree with the president," he added. "I certainly don't want to be speaking for Chairman Sensenbrenner, but the fact is, you know politics."

But Sensenbrenner appeared unmoved.

"What's going on now, in calling it a pathway to citizenship or earned legalization, is not honest because it is amnesty," he said at a news conference.

National Guard units to be armed, close to border
Chief says rules of engagement allow troops to fire weapons

The head of the U.S. National Guard surprised Border Patrol officials, declaring some of the troops he will send to assist them will work in close proximity to the border, be armed and allowed to fire their weapons if necessary.

"Any soldier assigned to a mission where he would be placed in harm or danger, where his life would be threatened potentially, will in fact be armed and will have the inherent right of self-protection," Lt. Gen. H. Steven Blum told the San Antonio Express-News Thursday.

Federal troops are scheduled to begin deployment to the four states on the Mexican border next week once the Guard and the Defense Department approve the memorandum of understanding that will define the mission's parameters. The document will also require signatures from the border governors.

Representatives from the National Guard and the offices of the governors of Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California have been meeting in Phoenix this week to craft an agreement on the use of force. The talks have focused on "harmonization" of the different states' laws on self-defense and the use of deadly force, said Texas National Guard commander Army Maj. Gen. Charles G. Rodriguez.

The rules of engagement "will be the same in Arizona, California, New Mexico and Texas," said Blum.

According to the current plan, the National Guard will conduct border securty operations for two years while the Border Patrol and U.S. Customs increase their numbers. The number of troops deployed at any given time would represent less than 2 percent of available Guard forces, none of which will be assigned from states likely to experience hurricanes this year.

While the Guard will assist with many support functions – conducting aerial surveillance and reconnaissance, building new roads and fences, providing intelligence and analysis to help track illegal crossings, transporting Border Patrol officers and detainees, and assisting with a number of logistics functions – some of their duties will put them in close proximity to the border and illegal crossers.

Troops stationed at vehicle inspection stations and engineers working along the border could be armed, said Blum, with M-16s, 9-mm handguns and shotguns.

"But we're not going to be carrying machine guns. We're not going to be carrying heavy weapons. We're not at war here," Blum said, adding he wants his troops "to be in a position to protect themselves."

Blum pointed to a long-standing relationship between the National Guard and the Mexican government stemming from past cooperative drug-interdiction efforts to say he doesn't believe the Guard's presence will be viewed negatively by Mexico. Among Mexicans, he said, the Guard is viewed "in a far more positive light than they would active-duty troops."

Border Patrol spokesman Todd Fraser expressed surprise that the Guard would be carrying out surveillance operations in close proximity to the border, saying his understanding was that troops would work in support roles repairing and maintaining Border Patrol vehicles, manning remote-surveillance cameras and giving agents advanced firearms training.

"As far as I know, a National Guard unit deployed along the border, right on the line, that's not a scenario I had heard about," said Fraser.

When told that Guard troops working as entry identification teams and engineers along the border would be armed and would not be required to wait for someone else to shoot at them first before using their weapons, Fraser termed the rule "silly."

"If [a Guardsman] has to fire, he has a right to fire," Blum said. "There are judgment calls that have to be made by mature, disciplined soldiers, and I'm confident that these soldiers have the discipline, the training, and the experience and judgment to make the proper call or we wouldn't be employing them in this mission."

Some Mexican migrants take an underground route to US

By Richard Marosi, Los Angeles Times  |  May 26, 2006

SAN DIEGO -- Armando Reyes climbed over the border fence and prepared for the dash into San Diego. But his smuggler instead led him and four other migrants through a patch of reeds to a smelly drainage pipe, and ordered them inside.

The black sludge reached Reyes's chin as he crawled through the shoulder-width tube. Rats scurried by. Terrified of losing his way in the darkness, Reyes reached for the migrant in front of him and clutched his sneaker.

The stocky 28-year-old from Oaxaca had followed the smuggler into a vast labyrinth of drainage pipes under Otay Mesa, a booming commercial area 15 miles southeast of downtown San Diego.

The 23-mile network leads to more than 500 manholes scattered across about 2 square miles. From these openings, mud-covered migrants crawl out into streets, busy intersections, and parking lots, creating a dizzying guessing game for US Border Patrol agents.

``They're popping up all over the place," said Joe Perez, the agent in charge of the area.

The migrant traffic below truck-clogged streets and new office parks underscores the persistence and desperation of people faced with crossing one of the most heavily fortified sections of the border.

Illegal crossings will soon become even tougher. President Bush is sending 6,000 National Guard troops to the border, Congress is mulling other enforcement plans, and next month this busy stretch of border across from Tijuana will be monitored by remote surveillance cameras.

So the underground beckons.

The tunnels channel rainwater out of flood-prone areas, but when the waters aren't running, the waves of migrants flow.

The cat-and-mouse game took an ironic turn last month when migrants even surfaced outside the offices of the US Border Tunnel Task Force. After that, some manhole covers -- one in a secured parking lot -- were welded shut. One was also topped with three 35-pound bags of rocks and gravel.

But six more manholes, all potential escape hatches, lie unlocked within a block of the federal facility. ``They're all interlinked, so you never know where they'll come up," said David Badger, a Border Patrol supervisor.

Other border cities have wrestled with similar situations, most notably Nogales, Ariz., which is linked underground to Nogales, Mexico, by two large storm-drain tunnels that are patrolled regularly by heavily armed agents.

Border Patrol agents have arrested hundreds of migrants exiting storm drains in the last year, but don't know how many people get through. Some estimate that thousands make it.

The problem has grown serious enough that agents are teaming with San Diego city engineers to create a computer map of the system. Research is also under way to find a way to attach sensors to manholes to alert agents when they are opened. Crews have welded shut about a dozen manholes known to be active migrant funnels.

At the tunnel task force, the federal multiagency group credited with the discovery in January of the longest illegal tunnel ever found under the border, a top official said the storm drains present a unique problem.

``It's not like when you have . . . a drug tunnel. We can't go in there and just fill them up with cement," said Michael Unzueta, the special agent in charge of Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

That is very scary PR

Yes, it is.

Aztlan group blamed
for newspaper theft
'MEChA' vandals censor campus paper
in retaliation for 'racist,' 'biased' coverage

Police at Pasadena City College in Southern California say they have no suspects in the theft of 5,000 copies of the campus newspaper despite a claim by students identifying themselves as members of Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlan – MEChA – saying they were responsible.

The theft, which occurred a week ago, was first noticed by distribution manager Kris Calnon while on his way to the Campus Courier's office. An empty newsstand that he had held 300 papers only two hours before caught his eye.

"I gave it three bundles," he said. "It usually takes a day and a half to empty."

According to Calnon, 10 minutes later, a student came to the office to say he had seen a man grab a stack of papers from the women's gym and carry it onto the men's gym.

While Calnon left to investigate, Courier photographer Daniel Lottes stayed behind. A few minutes later, four or five people entered the office carrying large black garbage bags.

"When they first walked in I thought they were bringing something in from the event [going on across the hall]," he said.

When a woman placed one of the bags on the table near his equipment, Lottes said he thought nothing of it. "Oh, let me move my camera," he said.

The woman handed him a letter, saying, "This is for the Courier staff – it will explain everything in the letter."

The letter accompanying over 2,000 torn copies of the Courier read:

    We were very dissapointed at the lack of coverage based on our high school conference. It has dishearted us to see no full length article, and a photo that did not represent our program.

    Months of hard work went into our high school conference, and it was our hope to see recognition of our hard work in the campus newspaper.

    We see this as a representitive example of the attitude the Campus Courier has toward higher education, and towards MEChA.

    As students of P.C.C., we can not accept this issue of the Campus Courier.

MEChA, founded at U.C. Santa Barbara in 1969, has been accused of being a racist group by its critics who point to the organzation's stated goal of returning the American Southwest to Mexico.

Pasadena's MEChA members – there are 15 to 20 – insist their group is like other campus clubs, with the stated purpose to "bring awareness about Chicano issues to the public, and to promote community solidarity."

"MEChA came up to the Courier with, like, four trash bags full of newspapers with a note attached and said we weren't covering them properly, so this is what we get," news chief Dean Lee told the Pasadena Star.

A Courier reporter had covered a MEChA event for the edition that was stolen. Space constraints, however, resulted in only a photograph and caption being published.

"They said it was racist and biased," Lee said.

Prof. James Aragon, one of MEChA's campus advisers, said he had no knowledge of any member's involvment, but it was too soon to blame MEChA because the investigation was still underway.

"No adviser would ever condone any type of behavior that is illegal," he said.

MEChA has been accused before of stealing newspaers at other colleges.

In 2002, MEChA was implicated in the theft of thousands of copies of conservative newspapers at U.C. Berkeley and U.C. Davis after articles critical of the organization were printed.

MEChA members were accused of taking 7,500 copies of the campus paper at the University of Northern Colorado at Greeley and returning them in garbage bags.

"What once started as something of a college prank has become a genuine problem for student media," Mike Heistand, legal consultant at the Student Press Law Center, said. People see taking the free papers as an effective way of "preventing the message from getting out they don't want to get out."

Immigration bill faces tough foe
Key congressman labels Senate plan 'a nonstarter'

Like a puppy greeting a snarling pit bull, the Senate's warm overtures of bipartisan good cheer following passage of its immigration bill Thursday night ran headlong Friday into a hostile and aggressive House reception by Rep. James Sensenbrenner.

The House Judiciary Committee chairman and author of the border crackdown bill that passed the House in December -- triggering nationwide protests by Latino immigrants and their supporters -- denounced the Senate bill as an amnesty for the nation's estimated 12 million illegal immigrants and the employers who hire them.

Sensenbrenner, R-Wis., delighted in repeating a newspaper columnist's description of his negotiating tactics with senators -- "that I've been known to eat them for breakfast and pick my teeth with their bones."

He called the Senate bill "a nonstarter" and mocked White House efforts to convince House Republicans otherwise, setting up a potential collision with the Senate that could kill immigration action this year.

Sensenbrenner will lead the House side of the conference committee charged with merging the wildly different House and Senate bills. His legislation would make felons of illegal migrants and build a 700-mile fence on the border with Mexico, making his name all but a dirty word among Latinos.

White House officials fear his approach could demolish President Bush's long courtship of Latino voters, the nation's fastest growing voting bloc, considered by the White House a key to maintaining the GOP's weakening grip on the West.

The Senate bill would offer a path to citizenship for most illegal immigrants in the country, a guest worker program for new entrants, legalization of 1.5 million farmworkers, tougher border security and tighter employer enforcement.

Sensenbrenner said that the Senate's plan for illegal immigrants is amnesty and that senators are dishonest for labeling it earned citizenship. He ridiculed White House political czar Karl Rove as "guru in chief," pointedly noting that he did not attend the two recent meetings Rove held with House Republicans, leaving his colleagues free to inform Rove that "the president is not where the American people are at."

Bush has insisted that any immigration overhaul be "comprehensive," weighing in heavily for the Senate approach. He has said any bill should toughen enforcement but also provide broader avenues for legal entry through a guest worker program. In a televised Oval Office address two weeks ago, the president endorsed the Senate's offer of eventual citizenship to illegal immigrants who have established roots in the United States.

Bush, in a statement after Senate passage of its bill, said effective immigration reform must "address the issue of the millions of illegal immigrants already in our country, and honor America's great tradition of the melting pot."

Sensenbrenner pledged to try to reach a compromise with the Senate, even as he narrowed its grounds. A guest worker program might be acceptable, he allowed, but only if it denies permanent residence, and only after the borders have been closed and employers are no longer able to hire illegal workers, to "cut off the attraction of cheap jobs."

"If the Senate gets off the dime of pushing for amnesty ... then I think there's room for negotiation," he said. But he called the two chambers "oceans apart."

Still, he added, "the American people are demanding that something is done, and I want to do my best to make sure that something is done, but the right thing is done."

As for the estimated 12 million now in the country illegally, Sensenbrenner said the answer is to make their stay in the country so difficult that they leave willingly. Mass deportation is impractical, he acknowledged, but the same result could be achieved through attrition.

"With the border controls and the enforcement of employer sanctions, the jobs for illegal immigrants will dry up," Sensenbrenner said. "... And if you can't get a job because employer sanctions are enforced, my belief is that a lot of the illegal immigrants will simply go back home voluntarily."

Even if Sensenbrenner could persuade the White House and Senate Republicans to adopt his approach, Senate Democrats certainly would not. Democrats provided the majority of a tenuous political coalition in the Republican-controlled Senate.

Sensenbrenner said he would not block the formation of the conference committee itself, despite worry among some Republicans that it would open the way for political attacks by Democrats.

"I think the conference should go forward, because the existing system is probably the worst of all possible worlds, and we have an obligation, in my opinion, to try to work something out," Sensenbrenner said. He said the conference meetings should be held in public as often as possible, so everyone "can see what the Senate and House negotiators are doing on this issue ... so that the voters can go to the polls assessing how their representatives and senators have done on this issue before they decide who to send back."

Sensenbrenner dismissed complaints from businesses that many industries such as agriculture, restaurants and hotels would suffer from worker shortages if denied foreign workers. "Americans will do and have done any job as long as they're paid enough money," he said.

Sensenbrenner called the Senate bill a "carbon copy" of the 1986 amnesty signed by President Ronald Reagan.

That law also imposed the country's first sanctions on employers who hire illegal immigrants, but the sanctions broke down almost immediately under extensive document fraud that made them all but unenforceable. When they were enforced, they often met stiff resistance from the public as well as employers.

Sensenbrenner vowed never to repeat the mistakes of 1986.

"I don't plan on signing a conference report ... knowing full well that when I'm old and crabby -- and I'm not old and crabby now, everybody knows that -- sitting on my front porch, I don't have people come up to say, 'You made the biggest mistake of your career in signing off on a bill that ended up making the problem worse.' "

Minutemen Building Ariz. Border Fence

 Scores of volunteers gathered at a remote ranch Saturday to help a civilian border-patrol group start building a short security fence in hopes of reducing illegal immigration from Mexico.

The Minuteman Civil Defense Corps plans to install a combination of barbed wire, razor wire, and in some spots, steel rail barriers along the 10-mile stretch of private land in southeastern Arizona.

 They hope it prompts the federal government to do the same along the entire Arizona border.

President Bush has pledged to deploy as many as 6,000 National Guard troops to strengthen enforcement at the border. The guardsmen would fill in on some behind-the-lines Border Patrol jobs while that agency's force is expanded.

But the Minutemen have said it's not enough. The group's founder, Chris Simcox, said they want a secure fence and they're starting at the site where his first patrols began in November 2002.

Rancher John Ladd and his son, Jack, were hopeful the effort would limit the illegal immigrants and drug runners who have cut the small fence along the property or just driven over it to cross into the U.S.

"We've been fighting this thing for 10 years with the fence, and nobody will do anything," Jack Ladd said.

Most of the day was dedicated to speeches from politicians and Minutemen leaders and celebrating large donations the Minutemen group has been receiving. As of midweek, the group had raised about $225,000 for fence materials and signed up about 1,000 volunteers to work on the project, organizers said.

"We're not going to stop. We're going to stay here with a group and keep building," said Timothy Schwartz of Glendale, Ariz., who was among at least 200 volunteers gathered. He said he wants a fence along the border from California to Texas.

Quetzal Doty of Sun Lakes, Ariz., a retired U.S. diplomatic consular officer, brought his wife, Sandy, to the event.

He said he's convinced the Minutemen and most Americans aren't anti- immigrant.

"They're just anti-illegal," said Doty. "The Minutemen walk the extra mile to avoid being anti-immigrant and that's what we like about the organization and what got us interested."

Lessons from over the border

I worked and lived as an alien in Mexico for five years. Mexican immigration and visitor laws are rigid. All visitors are issued a three-month Tourist Card (visa) before entering the country. Like it or not, at three months you must leave the country. You may return immediately as long as you have a new visa issued out of the country.

Mexico basically does not want foreign workers. A few with special skills are allowed when there is no alternative. When that happens, we are fingerprinted and told that: we cannot own property; our children can not go to public schools; no social services are available; we must obey all laws; and we may say nothing derogatory about Mexico. If one disobeys, he does not want to think about the penalties such as Mexican jails. The ACLU would have a wonderful time in Mexico.

We have a very serious national security problem with our leaky borders and inept control of foreign visitors. In their rush to appear that they are doing something, our politicians should understand that many of the 10-20 million undocumented illegal aliens are in our country are not Mexicans. They were students or visitors, who with our lax controls dropped out of sight after entering our country. I assure you that this would not happen in Mexico.

We need hard-working, talented people like the Mexicans in our country. We must fund consulates to remove the bottlenecks that today force them to sneak into our country. Equally important, we must implement programs to tell us where they are living and working after they get here. If they become affiliated with city gangs or commit a felony, they should be immediately deported with no right to return.

Spending billions to build fences along our borders and adding security measures at entry points is inadequate because it does not address the national security problem of controlling aliens after they enter our country.

We must document the illegals in our country. There are too many to deport. We will have to give working visas with a time limit to those who can document their work histories and are willing to pay any back-taxes owed.

As “guest workers” they really should understand that the word “guest” implies that one is a temporary visitor who is not expected to overstay his welcome. We are an English-speaking nation. Some proficiency in our language is essential for both citizenship and for their ability to become productive citizens.

Most importantly, our politicians must not only make workable laws, but also adequately fund the INS and other organizations required for our effort to document all aliens living in our nation.

Thomas Bailey retired after running his own business, with 40 percent of its sales out of the country. In Mexico, he was general manager of a U.S. subsidiary that manufactured dental equipment. He has an MBA from Stanford and lives in the Bee Tree community in Swannanoa.

'Speak English! This is America!'
Bloody brawl erupts at beauty salon as Spanish sparks customer clawfest


A Boston beauty salon was more bloody than beautiful this weekend when a brawl broke out over a customer speaking Spanish.

"Speak English! This is America!" one woman reportedly screamed at another at Kathy's Nail Design in the Dorchester section of the city.

The remark ignited a massive melee at the salon, with numerous women engaging in manicure-to-manicure combat.

"Ten years in this country, I never seen anything like this. The lady says 'Speak English, I don't want to hear Spanish!' and big fight happens," shop owner David Win told the Boston Herald. "There was blood in here and everything. There were a lot of customers in here. It [was] crazy."

Friday's incident prompted a call to 9-1-1, and an officer dispatched to break up the battle received scratches on his neck and arm.

Police say it began as one of the suspects, Sonia Pina, 20, was speaking Spanish to her cousin when another woman, Nakeisha Prichard, 20, went on the attack. Within minutes, at least four women were engaged in the salon scuffle.

"The two suspects began to argue and a fight ensued," said police spokeswoman Sharon Dottin.

Prichard allegedly pulled off her pump and began beating Pina with it, explaining to police, "I accidentally took my shoe off and hit her with it after she punched me."

She ended up with charges of assault and battery, resisting arrest, and assault on a police officer, inflicted by her newly manicured fake acrylic nails.

Pina was charged with assault and battery for allegedly punching Prichard in the face.

Later in the evening, the salon was packed with people conversing in several languages, including Vietnamese, Spanish, Portuguese and English.

"A lot of people are angry with us, but they are just stressed out with their own lives and taking it out on the immigrant people," Carmen Riveira, 28, a native of the Dominican Republic now living in Dorchester, told the Herald. "I pay my money to get my nails done. I can speak any language I want in here."

Another customer, Kristine DaRosa, 18, of Dorchester, said her family would be directly affected by the immigration-reform bill currently before Congress. One of her uncles is being deported to their native Cape Verde.

"All kinds of fights are going on because of this,'' said DaRosa. "People should just give everybody a chance.''

Border Patrol union boss: Tighter border won't help


The head of the labor union that represents U.S. Border Patrol agents said Sunday the sweeping immigration reform bill passed by the Senate last week will do little to stop the "revolving door" he sees daily along the nation's border.

In his first public speech since passage of the Senate's bill, T.J. Bonner told a Las Vegas gathering of those opposed to illegal immigration that lawmakers had created "amnesty on steroids."

After describing what he considers decades of failed policies, Bonner said the solution isn't more Border Patrol agents, National Guard troops, technology or walls on the U.S.-Mexico border.

The answer, he said, is to "turn off the employer magnet ¦ (and) focus on the reason people are crossing borders."

Bonner is president of the National Border Patrol Council, representing 10,500 rank-and-file agents. He spoke to about 220 people from around the nation attending the second annual Unite to Fight Summit, held this weekend at Cashman Center.

The event drew dozens of protesters Saturday, but Sunday's gathering seemed to attract less controversy.

After taking the stage to a standing ovation, Bonner, a 28-year veteran of the Border Patrol, said measures to harden the border proposed by President Bush in recent weeks or contained in the Senate bill would accomplish little.

His remarks were greeted with frequent applause and huzzahs, bringing the event the atmosphere of a religious revival.

On sending 6,000 National Guard troops to the border: "It's great to have help, but they're only going to be able to do so much," and in some cases may wind up slowing the Border Patrol down.

On building 370 miles of wall, as proposed by the Senate: "There are four ways to get around a wall - go under it, over it, around it or through it."

Further, the Senate's proposal to offer a path to legalization for many of the nation's estimated 12 million undocumented immigrants was doing little more than "rewarding someone for breaking the law."

He also said he believed there were closer to 20 million undocumented immigrants in the United States, and that the very discussion of relief for them is already prompting more people to cross the border in hopes of taking advantage of future legislation.

The Border Patrol has apprehended about 10 percent more border-crossers since March than during comparable periods in recent years, he said.

This is the same phenomenon that occurred in 1986, when President Ronald Reagan offered amnesty to immigrants in the country illegally.

The answer, he said, is to create stiffer penalties for employers who hire undocumented workers, and developing a counterfeit-proof Social Security card.

He also said he "refuse(s) to believe that Americans are not willing to take the jobs (that immigrants fill) - if employers paid a decent wage."

As for the House bill that now must be reconciled with the Senate bill, its get-tough measures such as making illegal immigration a felony, while they wouldn't help get to the root of the problem - jobs for immigrants - would "at least not exacerbate the situation."

In the end, however, Bonner, the man who represents the thousands who play cat and mouse with millions of immigrants seeking a way into the United States, said "the best thing that can happen is if they (Congress) walk away from this process" - and not pass any bill.

Then he hopes that voters realize that illegal immigration will only be stopped when laws are passed "to cut off the access to jobs."

Growers fear worst in immigration reform debate


OCEANSIDE, Calif. - Tomato grower Luawanna Hallstrom understands how paths cross in the shadowy world of illegal immigrant and employer.

Her three-generation family farm needed workers to harvest a crop in 2001, so it hired 300 farmhands. All their documents appeared in order, she said.

Then federal authorities found that three-fourths of the workers were illegal immigrants, and that left the peak harvest in ruins.

"People say, `You should get those employers that hire the undocumented!' Well, wait a minute. They have documents, but they're fraudulent. We are supposed to take them at face value - otherwise you get into these discrimination issues," Hallstrom said.

As enforcement has intensified in recent years and would multiply further under proposals now before Congress, growers like Hallstrom say they are under a strain over whether their fields will have enough workers.

This reality has made growers major stakeholders in Congress' efforts to reform immigration policies. The U.S. Senate is poised to vote Thursday on a comprehensive immigration bill, with passage considered likely.

One part of the bill would legalize up to 1.5 million undocumented farmhands over a five-year period. Of the nation's 1.6 million farm workers, growers say 70 percent are undocumented, but the United Farm Workers says it's 95 percent.

For the past year, farmers have been complaining about a potential labor shortage, highlighted this month by a federal Agriculture Department report showing 4 percent fewer workers on American farms than a year ago. The May issue of California Farmer magazine, sitting in Hallstrom's office, was dominated with headlines such as "Labor woes grow."

Some producers say that if they do not have an adequate workforce, they may be forced to move their farms to other countries.

Hallstrom remedied her 2001 crisis by hiring farm workers through the federal government's temporary guest agricultural worker program. The program is shunned by most farmers because it's too costly and its bureaucratic delays threaten crops, she said. One reason Hallstrom uses the guest farm worker program is that her family does some of its farming on land leased from Camp Pendleton, where there are heightened security concerns.

But many farmers are less secure about the legality of their workforce.

"If you had electronic verification (of workers' documents) right now and you went out there and checked every worker, you might as well lock up every farmer out there. There's nowhere else to go" to find laborers, Hallstrom said.

So, in an unusual alliance between growers and farm worker advocates, both sides persuaded Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., to sponsor the proposed five-year pilot program for legalizing farm workers.

The Senate proposal, dubbed AgJobs, would also streamline the so-called H-2A guest worker program that Hallstrom currently uses and would freeze worker wages at 2003 levels for three years, during which a federal study would re-evaluate pay formulas, officials said.

"This would make sure (undocumented farm workers) would come out of the shadows," said Scott Gerber, spokesman for Feinstein.

Although the United Farm Workers are a partner with growers in endorsing the measure, the group disputes farmers' claims of looming labor shortages. Marc Grossman, principal spokesman for the United Farm Workers, said pay was stagnant at minimum-wage levels, hardly an indication of higher demand for workers. But the Agriculture Department study showed wages up 5 percent from a year ago, with field workers making an average $8.96 an hour last month.

"We don't agree with growers on anything except immigration reform," Grossman said.

Added Craig Regelbrugge, co-chairman of a growers group called the Agriculture Coalition for Immigration Reform, "We need to solve agriculture's problem of reliance on an illegal workforce."

If passed, the Senate measure would stand in sharp contrast to a proposal passed by the U.S. House, which doesn't offer provisions for legalization. The Senate bill would find strong opponents in a joint conference, whose mission would be to reconcile both chambers' reform initiatives.

"It's a bald-faced amnesty," said Will Adams, spokesman for Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colo.

"Growers don't want to pay the prevailing wage because they want to undercut American workers and get around the law," Adams said. "The union, they don't want the workers to go home (to their native countries). They want them to stay and be part of the union."

Jeff Lungren, spokesman for Rep. James Sensenbrenner, R-Wis., who's a leading advocate for tougher border enforcement, said sanctions against employers with illegal immigrant workers are especially needed.

"It is always cheaper to hire an illegal worker because the employer doesn't always follow the wage laws and take out for Social Security," he said.

Back on the farm, where laborers stooped to prepare the fields for planting vineripe tomatoes, Hallstrom can recite rich lore on how the family business was started by her immigrant grandfather, Harry Singh, from Punjab, India, and her Basque grandmother from New Mexico. In addition to the Camp Pendleton tract, the family venture farms in the scenic San Luis Rey Valley.

Hallstrom and other California growers contend that many farm workers have found more profitable work in construction and elsewhere, straining their labor pool.

Without immigration reforms, Hallstrom said, "Agriculture in this country would go away, as we know it." Her family would consider moving its farm to Mexico, where many of her workers now originate, she said.